Kung Fu Panda: Battle of the Millennia
by Tigreye33
Summary: Third installment of the Tiger's Eye Series and sequel to Kung Fu Panda: Curse of the Seer. Due to unfortunate circumstances, the Masters of the Jade Palace are chased from their home and from place to place in China. Will they regain control in time, or will the Valley of Peace fall to chaos?
1. Introduction

_Chapter One: Introduction_

_In Kung Fu Panda: Unseen Eyes, Tigress found a clue about her parents while retrieving a stolen artifact. During this time, the Masters met Vixey, a master detective, and the Polecats, a very skilled group of thieves. Vixey joined the team in time to help Tigress learn more about her past and escape from the villainous tyrant Huang Zu. Tigress learned the complete truth about her parents and met her birth father not long before his death. After the defeat of Huang Zu, Vixey became a permanent part of the team as a new Kung Fu Master._

_In Kung Fu Panda: Curse of the Seer, it was revealed that Tigress was a Seer, the beginnings of a Soothsayer. A vision led her to finding Po's birth father and a hidden colony of pandas. But before a search for the village could begin, the Jade Palace was visited by four Soothsayers hoping to recruit Tigress to their school, and Tian, Shifu's younger sister, was one of them! After Tigress rejected their offer for the umpteenth time, the leader, Wang, decided to pull some strings in his and his students' favor – by cursing Tigress. Without the ability to use advanced Kung Fu, she, Shifu, and Tian turned good fled from the Jade Palace to find her cure. While the Soothsayers and Masters alike chased after them, two of the Soothsayers turned against their teacher and joined the Masters. After curing Tigress, the Soothsayers stood up against and fought their master, willing to die to save the Masters. The Masters returned in time to save them and nearly beat Wang before he cursed Tigress again, this time threatening Tigress's life! In an attempt to save her own life, Tigress's powers became incredibly strong and killed Wang before he could kill her. During this entire adventure, Jin joined the Masters as the new quarterstaff master._

* * *

The ship creaked to a halt. Two hulking figures stepped onto the dock and looked around. In the night, it was difficult for passersby to not feel intimidated by their large and unknown shapes.

"P-papers?"

The two looked down on a pig who showed little fright. He'd tried to hide his fear, but his voice betrayed him. One of the figures shoved a fistful of paper into the poor pig's hooves and nearly knocked him off his feet. They waited impatiently for the pig to do his job.

"You're approved," the pig said quickly. "Just don't cause trouble."

"We won't," a small hidden being said from the shoulder of one of the large figures.

The voice caught the pig off-guard and he jumped. He said nothing as the three passed by and went towards town.

"Not for you we won't," the voice added out of earshot.


	2. Teaming Up

_Chapter Two: Teaming Up_

The two tigers stood staring each other down, ready to pounce. Each held a quarterstaff. They were both waiting for a single word...

"Start!"

Each dashed toward his or her opponent.

Jin attempted a jump strike on Tigress, who held her staff up and successfully blocked. She then threw him off, charging as he landed on his feet and slid back. She swung at him, but he bent over backward to avoid the blow. He then swung at her feet. She jumped over the attack. The tigers continued to exchange attacks, blocking or dodging each other. Occasionally, an attack would land, but the one on the receiving end wouldn't even flinch.

Tigress blocked an attack with her staff that sent her sliding backwards. She ran at Jin and pole vaulted over him and his attack, landing a particularly painful blow on the back of his head. However, he recovered in time to strike her legs with a sweeping blow, knocking her over. Before she could land flat on her back, she twisted and landed on her hand, flipping back up, ready to fight.

Jin began to spin his staff, keeping Tigress from landing any blows. She struck out at the spinning barrier, trying to disrupt the cycle. She tried stabbing at the barrier and striking to make the other staff reverse its course. Neither worked. Then she scaled her own staff and leapt over the barrier. Jin struck at the opposing staff, but as he hit it, the other end came at him and struck him in the face. Tigress landed behind him and struck him across the back.

Then Tigress found Jin's staff had come up between her and her own staff. She felt herself get pulled forward. She prepared to roll to her feet once she would land, but Jin moved his staff along hers, sharply hitting Tigress's hand. Taken by surprise, she lost her grip and landed awkwardly on her back. Before she could think about getting up, Jin's staff came down on her chest, firmly pinning her to the ground.

"Pin," Shifu said.

The other Masters looked like they'd been holding their breaths and erupted in chatter.

"That was so close!" Viper said. "You almost had him!"

"I thought for sure you'd beat him!" Po told Tigress.

Jin helped Tigress up.

"Maybe next time," Jin told her. "How you climbed your staff... you copied that from Shifu, didn't you?"

"Of course I did," Tigress said. "Who's next?"

The others immediately fell quiet.

"No need to jump up all at once."

Everyone turned to the entrance of the Training Hall. There was a tiger leaning against the doorway with a smirk on her face.

"Xinli!" Jin cried, his arms wide to receive her.

Xinli walked cheerfully to her boyfriend and kissed him.

"Miss me, babe?" she asked.

"'Course," Jin told her. "Life's lonely up here, away from home."

"Lonely? Around here?" Vixey started, and then whispered to Crane, "I blame Tigress."

Tigress shot her a look that made her cringe.

"We were wondering when you would stop by, Xinli," Shifu said. "It's been a while since your last visit."

"It's been a busy time since Jin came up here," Xinli said. "Now that I'm here to help, we can do two matches at once. Or we can do two on two? If there aren't any volunteers, I'm going to pick someone."

Jin snickered as he saw the others' eyes widened with slight fear.

"We show no fear in the face of the most frightening enemies," he began, "but at the possibility of getting hit over the head with a stick, you all freeze up? That's hilarious."

"Hardly," Tigress answered, the ghost of a smile on her face. "Why don't we make things a little interesting? You and Xinli against me and someone else and we don't have to use quarterstaff techniques."

"That's a good idea," Xinli added. "It might liven them up a little."

"Choose your ally," Jin said.

Tigress looked at the other Masters.

"Viper? Vixey?" she started, passing them over due to signs of reluctance. "Or how about... Po?"

The panda jumped a little.

"Uh... sure," he said hesitantly.

"Take your places," Shifu told them.

The four warriors complied.

"If you make us lose," Tigress whispered to Po, "you'll be the next one fighting Jin."

The thought made him laugh weakly.

"You ready, Jin-Jin?" Xinli asked.

"Always, my love," Jin answered.

"Begin!"

Everyone but Tigress ran forward immediately. She started a second afterward and ran up Po's back without the panda stopping at all. She leapt off his shoulders and made ready to land behind the opposing tigers. Jin froze in his tracks and spun around to face her.

"You think you could catch me off-guard like that?" he asked her, striking out.

Tigress hit the staff aside and struck at his chest.

"It was worth a try," she growled as the staff came back at her and swatted away her fist.

"Try harder," Jin answered.

He and his girlfriend fought back to back, warding off attacks and, in Xinli's case, occasionally landing a blow. Tigress aimed a kick at the staff, moving it aside. She hit Jin's right cheek before the staff came back, hitting his left as the staff went by again. This made him strike furiously, making her have to block time after time for a short while.

Xinli kept landing blow after blow on Po, making him need to block, but failing to half the time. But Xinli realized something too late. He was faking how badly he was getting hurt. The fat was cushioning most of the blows. She struck down on him and felt two of his fingers make contact with her right wrist. She gasped as she lost feeling in that wrist and the attack landed without very much strength.

"Trouble!" she told Jin.

Her boyfriend grabbed the top of her staff and pulled, sending her at Tigress as he slid under and shoved the end of his staff at Po's belly. Xinli swung down left-handedly at Tigress, the staff hitting her on the top of her head, stunning her for a very short moment. Po gasped for air after Jin's staff made contact. Then he cried out as he received a strike across his chest, knocking him over.

He fell flat on his back and Jin's staff pinned him to the ground.

"Pin," Shifu announced.

Jin turned away from the panda, who was crawling away breathlessly, and witnessed the scene just in time. Tigress was taking advantage of the fact that Xinli was not left-handed. Xinli was in clear distress. She struck out at Tigress, only to have her opponent grab the end of the staff that was closest to the ground and flip her. Xinli shrieked as she couldn't feel the ground anymore. She suddenly found herself flat on her back with Tigress putting enough pressure on the staff to keep her from rising.

"Pin," Shifu said again.

The two still standing rushed at each other. Jin struck at Tigress, but she slid under him, jumped up, and roundhouse kicked his head. Jin swung the staff backward, barely missing Tigress as he turned around. He began spinning his staff as he did in the previous fight. However, Tigress struck out at it, hitting it directly, and stopped the rotation completely.

Jin spun around and struck at the right and then the left, but Tigress blocked both times. Then she grabbed the very middle of the staff, spun it so he would be swept off his feet, slammed him onto the ground, and pressed down on the staff.

"Pin," Shifu announced again. "Tigress and Po win the match."

The other Masters cheered. Xinli rushed forward and helped Jin up.

"How were you able to stop that?" Jin asked. "The barrier... You couldn't stop it before."

"I didn't spend twenty years training with a quarterstaff," Tigress told him. "The staff, to me, is more like something extra. Something that's easily lost. I haven't learned to put more power into it yet."

"That explains a lot," Jin admitted.

"Xinli, wait," Tigress began.

Xinli was about to turn away, holding her useless right hand with her left. She flinched when she saw Tigress strike at her and felt a solid blow from two fingers on her right wrist.

"Eep!" she cried before regaining feeling in her hand. "Oh! Thank you!"

"No problem," Tigress answered.

"Does... does this mean I... still have to fight him?" Po asked wearily.

"No," Monkey told him. "You guys won."

"You can still fight him if you want to," Tigress said somewhat sarcastically.

Po sank to his knees in exhaustion.

"That will be enough for now," Shifu said, walking toward his students. "That was an impressive battle, all four of you."

The four fighters bowed to him, Po still on his knees.

"Thank you, Master," they all said.

"You're welcome to stay for dinner, Xinli," Shifu said.

"Sorry to fight and fly," Xinli answered, "but I need to go. I promise I'll stay for a little longer next time."

"You better keep that promise," Jin told her before kissing her.

"I will," Xinli said. "I couldn't stay away forever. Bye, everyone!"

"Bye, Xinli!" the others said.

Xinli left the Training Hall and disappeared toward the giant staircase.

Shifu immediately turned to his students.

"During the next quarterstaff lesson, I will not tolerate such reluctance," he snapped. "Either be ready to defeat or be defeated. You are all dismissed."

"Yes, Master," they all replied.

* * *

**This may not be the greatest chapter, but it is only the second. Please stay tuned!**


	3. An Invitation

_Chapter Three: An Invitation_

"So how long have you guys been together?" Vixey asked.

She and Jin walked into the Training Hall, where the other Masters were training.

"Since we were little kids," Jin answered, "but it didn't become official until about six years ago."

"Six years?" Vixey began. "Why haven't you proposed to her yet?"

"It didn't seem like the right time," Jin told her.

"Slackers!" came Monkey's voice.

"It's about time you guys got here!" Mantis shouted. "Get going!"

"All right, all right," Vixey said, stretching.

She flipped onto the Field of Fiery Death and danced past the jets of fire without getting a single burn on her robes. Jin pole-vaulted over the jets of fire and landed on the farthest edge of the Jade Tortoise, causing Monkey and Crane to steady themselves before continuing their fight.

Po and Tigress carefully edged around the Gauntlet of Wooden Warriors, keeping an eye out for their opponent. Suddenly, several wooden figures began to spin around, the source approaching Tigress. She thrust her arm out, barely missing the flash of green zooming by. She kicked high in another direction, hitting Mantis and sending him flying. More wooden figures spun, their source heading straight for Po. He, too, struck out, but he was too late. Viper's tail struck him across the cheek, sending him spinning into the wooden figures. He was knocked around until Tigress caught up to him and steadied him. Then they prepared for the next attack.

As all the Masters were training, Shifu walked in to see their progress.

"Master!" Jin cried. "Found what you wanted!"

He tossed a scroll into the air and hit it with his staff, sending it in Shifu's direction before continuing his fight. The red panda effortlessly caught the scroll and opened it, reading quickly.

"Very well, Jin," Shifu said, "however, Vixey, this does not explain why you were late."

Vixey tripped and fell backward off the Field of Fiery Death, flipping back onto her feet. She quickly bowed to him.

"Sorry, Master," she told him. "Couldn't find my brush this morning."

"Learning Kung Fu does not require perfectly brushed fur," Shifu said sharply. "If you can't find it, go without it."

"How many times have they had this talk?" Po asked quietly.

"Too many to count," Tigress whispered, repelling Viper.

"I'll do better next time, Master," Vixey said, bowing again before leaping back onto the Field of Fiery Death.

Shifu shook his head and made ready to leave the Hall. Zeng suddenly ran in, stopping just short of the red panda.

"Master Shifu," he began, holding out a fancy-looking scroll, "this just came."

Shifu took one look at the scroll and rolled his eyes.

"This wouldn't happen to be another invitation from Ting, would it?" he asked. "She should know we can't come to every dinner and festival that happens in Gongmen."

"It doesn't look like that, Master," Zeng said as Shifu opened the scroll and began reading.

Shifu's eyes widened.

"Hmm," he began, "this is quite sudden. Why would he suddenly be inviting us?"

He turned toward his students.

"Stop, all of you," he said.

Vixey jumped off the Field of Fiery Death and Crane, Monkey, and Jin stood an equal distance apart on the Jade Tortoise to keep it from moving. Those among the Gauntlet of Wooden Warriors stood at attention.

"You have been invited to attend the Emperor's birthday celebration," Shifu announced.

"What?" Mantis began.

"I hate these things," Tigress growled.

"When is it?" Viper asked.

"In two weeks," Shifu answered, looking back at the scroll.

"Two weeks?!" Vixey started. "His birthday is in six weeks!"

"Maybe he just wants to have an early birthday," Po suggested. "I don't know anyone who wouldn't want an early birthday."

Everyone looked at him.

"Okay, maybe I know two people," Po corrected. "Maybe three!"

"The point is, we all have to go," Monkey said.

"The Emperor himself invited us," Crane added.

"Not all of us," Shifu said. "All of you. I wasn't included on this list."

"That must be so heartbreaking," Tigress said sarcastically.

Shifu eyed her as Vixey muffled a giggle.

"In order for you to get to the Imperial City in time, you must leave tonight," he said. "Prepare yourselves, and I will see you in a month."

His students bowed to him and began to head for the barracks.

* * *

"His birthday party?" Vixey began. "His birthday party? It isn't like the Emperor to have his birthday early! I think something's up."

The eight Masters were walking along a wide path far from the Jade Palace while dusk was falling. There were dense forests on both sides.

"Maybe he suspects someone's going to make a threat against him?" Viper suggested.

"He's always suspicious," Mantis said. "He's the Emperor. There's always a group of people who don't like him."

"But Vixey's right," Tigress said. "It isn't like him to suddenly invite us to an early birthday. He would have made sure to invite us weeks ago. And even the mention of an 'early birthday' sounds dubious."

"Dubious or not," Po began, "the Emperor himself invited us to a personal event! The Emperor! Of all of China!"

"I figured you'd be psyched about it, Po," Crane said.

They continued on in silence. There was barely a light on the horizon when Tigress spotted a dark figure farther up on their path.

"Hold up," she said. "I have a feeling we'll need to be ready for a fight."

"You always have that feeling," Monkey told her.

Jin had already spotted the figure and reached back to grab his staff at a moment's notice.

"It's better to be safe than sorry," he muttered.

The uneasy feeling spread to all the Masters when they saw that it wasn't just one figure, but a group of them. The tension grew as they approached each other.

It was full-on night when the figures stopped walking.

"Halt!" one figure cried. "Masters of the Jade Palace! We place you under arrest for treason against the Emperor!"


	4. Accusations

**Sorry for the really long wait. I'll try to get to publishing more often. Until then, here's your chapter!  
**

* * *

_Chapter Four: Accusations_

The Masters stopped immediately.

"Us? Under arrest? _Treason_?!" Vixey cried. "Are you sure you got the right people? We've never committed treason in our lives!"

"On the contrary," a small figure said, walking a few steps away from the others, "we have legitimate proof that you, the Masters of the Jade Palace, are conspiring to dethrone our great Emperor. So we will tell you once, and only once, to surrender and avoid further harm to yourselves."

Tigress eyed the small figure, and she guessed Jin was doing the same thing. The figure seemed to be the size and nearly the shape of a weasel. Even though she had excellent night vision, it was hard to see the details.

"May I ask your name?" she asked. "You don't seem familiar to me. And you do understand that it's a crime to try to arrest someone if you don't have the right, don't you?"

"My name is Ruili," the figure said. "I am new to the force, as are my troops. I do understand, and I have the full right to arrest enemies to the Emperor."

The Masters noticed that the others of Ruili's group were becoming threatening.

"What will it be?" Ruili hissed.

Just that sentence sent chills up Tigress's spine. It may have been months ago, but it still reminded her of the time her friends' lives had been on the line, depending on her answer. But this time everyone could defend themselves. And this time, she knew what her answer would be.

"We won't surrender to enemies of the Emperor!" she shouted.

Instantly, all eight of the Masters shot forward. But so did many figures from behind Ruili. The many figures were all easily recognized as felines. But what kind of feline was the question.

The Masters fought valiantly, landing attack after attack. But these felines were tougher than the enemies they were used to fighting. These attackers were skilled fighters, blocking and using strong attacks. Tigress blocked one attack and was shoved back a foot or two. The others dodged and blocked constantly and attacked when they were able. These felines were nearly as skilled as the Masters were, and their great number began bearing down on them.

Amid all the fighting, all the Masters could hear a _swish swish_. The confusion of fighting suddenly turned into the confusion of where the Masters disappeared to. Ruili, wide-eyed and furious, looked around for her quarry.

"Where did they go?!" she shrieked. "How could you have lost them?!"

The felines came to attention and the chaos stopped at once. One of the felines, who seemed visibly stronger and tougher than the rest, examined those of her kind.

"What do you have to say for yourselves?" she hissed. "How did they get away?"

"I-I'm not sure," one of the group answered. "It's like they disappeared."

The leader shot forward and lifted the other up by the throat, looking her in the eye.

"Of course they disappeared!" the leader spat. "Otherwise we wouldn't be having this conversation!"

She dropped her underling, causing her to scramble to stand up and at attention.

"Find them at once!" Ruili demanded. "And don't you fail me!"

Immediately, half the felines ran for one side of the path and the other ran for the other, both forces beginning to search the forests thoroughly.

"They can't have gotten far," Ruili murmured.

* * *

Vixey looked through the forest at the distant figures and turned to the others.

"They're searching now," she whispered.

"We need to get out of here," Viper started. "We should warn Shifu!"

"And what if that invitation is real?" Crane argued. "If we just go back as if it isn't, the Emperor would hunt us down anyway!"

"It was fake," Tigress said, watching their enemies in their futile search. "It was meant to draw us out."

An uneasy silence fell over the Masters.

"Then that means..." Vixey started.

"That we'd already be too late to warn Shifu," Tigress finished for her. "Ruili's people may have already been there, waiting for us to leave. If we go back now, we'll be overpowered."

"Wait a minute," Po began, "we're not even going back? What about Shifu? What about the Valley?"

"There's nothing we can do, Po," Mantis told him. "We'll be defeated if we go back, and what use will we be then?"

Silence fell again.

"So what was Ruili?" Vixey asked. "I didn't quite recognize her."

"She's an otter," Jin answered. "I've seen a few of them before, when I was a cub. They were stopping by for directions to Cheng Guang and I'd never heard of them after that."

"Whoa whoa whoa," Vixey continued. "I've seen otters before! Why couldn't I recognize her now?"

"Her species is native to China," Jin said. "They tend to keep to themselves."

"Stop talking," Tigress growled quietly.

Silence again. But now they could hear rustling as the enemy felines searched closer, but not close enough. The rustling died down as they got farther away.

"We need to move," Tigress finally said. "Go through parts they've searched already. The more distance we can get between us and them, the better."

"But what about the Valley?" Po weakly persisted. "We can't just-!"

"We have to," Tigress interrupted. "Don't argue, Po."

"But-!"

"Po," Tigress continued firmly, "I know. They'll be okay."

Po saw that his feeling was mutual. She hated to abandon the Valley like this. Reluctantly, he followed her lead and the Masters crept away and out of the forest. When they finally reached the end and climbed up a hill, Po looked back at the Valley. Shocked, he also saw Tigress doing the same. As she turned away to continue onward, he thought he saw pain on her face.

"Let's get going," she said.


	5. The Source

_Chapter Five: The Source_

Seven of the eight Masters waited near a small town in silence. It was now morning, and last night's sleep was anything but pleasant.

"I hadn't seen those cats before," Mantis started. "They were all gold, and one was pale. There wasn't a single mark on their fur."

Jin looked troubled.

"I don't think I've ever seen cats like that before," he said. "Are you sure that's what they looked like?"

"Pretty sure," Mantis answered.

"Those girls were all incredibly strong," Crane added.

"Girls?" Viper asked. "Are you sure they were all girls?"

"I can tell what a girl looks like, you know," Crane told her.

Tigress remained silent, watching the town.

"I haven't fought any cat that strong," Jin said.

"I have," Tigress suddenly answered.

Everyone looked at her as she turned to face them.

"He wasn't the same species as these cats, though," she continued. "Huang Zu was a Siberian tiger and was about as strong as these new cats. Maybe Vixey knows something about them. They certainly don't originate here."

"When will she be back anyway?" Monkey asked. "It shouldn't take that long to get a few groceries."

"No, it doesn't," came Vixey's voice.

Most of the Masters jumped and looked, finding her leaning against a tree holding a medium-sized bag.

"Then where were you?" Mantis asked.

"As I was shopping," she began, sitting down next to the others and passing out the contents of her bag, "I heard something about some rumors going on about us."

"Anything about us running away like cowards?" Po asked gloomily.

"Surprisingly, no," Vixey said. "Apparently, we stole things from the people we rescued, tried to kill a few ambassadors and other higher-ups, and a few other things. Word's also out that a new group of vigilantes stopped us from tracking and assassinating the Emperor. Sound familiar?"

The others looked very disturbed.

"So, because these rumors are flying around, I decided to find where they started," Vixey continued. "I got the talkers to say who told them without them noticing me and I got as far as a fight club in a town a few miles down the road."

The members of the Furious Five looked a little surprised.

"A fight club?" Tigress asked. "Could it be the Da Brothers' Arena?"

"The very same," Vixey answered. "You haven't been there, have you?"

"Several times to track down crime bosses," Monkey told her.

"It's a mess down there," Crane added. "Everyone there will hide anyone. It took us an entire week to find an elephant."

"If you've been there several times," Jin started, "then they'll recognize you as soon as you walk through the door."

"Well then, it's a good thing I'm here," Vixey told them. "I've been living on disguises since I became a detective. Your own mothers couldn't recognize you after I'm through with you."

Po, Tigress, and Monkey simply stared at her.

"What?" Vixey started. "It's just an express-! Oh! Right! Sorry."

She took a small box out of her robes.

"So, who's going?" she asked.

The others looked conflicted.

"We're going to the fight club?" Viper asked. "Just to find who sent out rumors? I think it's a bit obvious who sent them out."

"That's not what we're looking for!" Vixey said. "Whoever's in that club might know something related to Ruili, like her strengths, weaknesses, and, oh, I don't know, what she's going for? Isn't that a little important now?"

Tigress nodded.

"I'll go," she said.

"I'll do it, too," Po volunteered.

Everyone just looked at him.

"Uh, I don't think so," Mantis said.

"Why not?" Po asked.

"Have you heard anything about the Da Brothers' Arena?" Crane asked.

"It isn't just anyone who fights there," Viper told him. "The toughest, most dangerous warriors fight there."

"If we want to get anything, we need the strongest of us to go," Monkey said.

"And it's Triple-or-Nothing week," Vixey added. "Three against three."

A smirk touched Jin's face.

"I have an idea," he said, stepping forward.

* * *

"One remains against two! Things are looking bad for this one!"

A rabbit stood, holding his staff steady. He faced his two opponents, a pair of warthogs, as they approached.

_Thwip thwip!_

Suddenly, the hogs were on their backs and the rabbit attempted a jump strike. The hogs rolled away and approached him from both sides. The rabbit swung his staff this way and that, catching the hogs on their legs, arms, and snouts. One strike landed on the backside of one of the hogs, resulting in a loud, high-pitched squeal and making the viewers burst out in laughter.

Again, the hogs turned on the rabbit, now furious. The rabbit narrowed his eyes and jabbed out with his staff at one of the hogs. It caught him in the chest, knocking the air out of his lungs. The rabbit knocked him over and swung strongly at his head. The blow landed and resulted in unconsciousness.

A third of the crowd cheered as the rabbit struck a pose for a moment and jumped away. The other two-thirds adopted grave faces. They then cheered loudly for the remaining hog, starting to chant his name.

"It's now anyone's game! Who will win this match?"

The last hog squealed very loudly in anger and charged. But the rabbit only evaded and jumped onto his snout. He swung his staff down hard on his head. The two-thirds of the crowd gasped and watched as their hero fell flat on his back, staring dumbly at the ceiling as if there was a bright pink pony calling out to him up there.

The rabbit struck a triumphant pose as his followers screamed and whistled. He ran to his fallen friends, who were grinning at him with almost toothless mouths. He helped them up and out of the arena.

"One more fight! One more fight!"

The rabbit was nearly at the door with his winnings.

"I must decline," he called to his fans. "I will quit while I'm ahead. But I will be back!"

He was now greeted with boos and rotten fruit. He hurried to get his friends to the slightly opened door.

Suddenly, the door swung open, knocking the three of them aside. In strode a sharply dressed white tiger followed by three women: another tiger, a fox, and a snake, all ghostly white with pitch-black markings. They wore beautiful gowns and didn't look particularly threatening.

The crowd eyed them jealously as a huge black bear stood up from his seat overlooking the arena.

"Where can a man go to get into a match around here?" Jin proclaimed.

The crowd started to murmur excitedly. The bear eyed Jin.

"This isn't the place for you, pretty boy," he growled. "Only real fighters come here."

"But I do have real fighters," Jin told him.

He motioned to the three ladies behind him. The three didn't show any emotion.

The crowd burst into laughter, as did the bear.

"You brought girls to fight?" the bear roared. "You can't be serious!"

Tigress's gaze suddenly turned to a goose whose wing crept closer to Jin's wallet. The sash she was wearing suddenly snapped like a whip and wrapped around the goose's wing, flinging him and slamming him against the far wall.

The crowd got very quiet. The bear looked at Jin and his girls with interest.

"So," Jin began, unfazed by the most recent events, "when do we fight?"

The bear motioned to the arena.

"Right now," he said.

* * *

The girls leapt into the arena rather than taking the stairs. Jin plopped himself down onto a seat by the bar, listening closely to what the nearby people were saying. At this moment, it was what the rest of the crowd was doing: betting on who would win the next match.

Three crocodiles entered the arena. They snickered at the sight of the girls.

"Hello, little ladies," their leader began. "Are you here to have a little fun? We can show you a good time!"

"Aw, isn't his cute?" Vixey said just loud enough for some of the crowd to hear her. "He thinks we're little girls here to play house."

"I don't think he knows just what fun is," Viper suggested gently. "Shall we show him just what fun is?"

The two looked at Tigress, who cocked her head in mild curiosity.

"Begin!" the bear shouted.

The girls shot forward and suddenly the crocodiles were knocked away as if an explosion occurred. Tigress and Vixey attacked with their skirts and Tigress and Viper attacked with sashes and ribbons that seemed to appear from nowhere. In no time at all, the crocs were defeated.

Many members of the crowd cheered loudly. Others just wiped their eyes as if they blinked and it was all over. The girls retreated to their side of the arena to wait for their next opponents. Soon, there was a goose and two rabbits at the other side of the arena. The betting ended and the fight started. But it was all over nearly as fast as the first one.

* * *

"Hey, tiger," a pig started, calling Jin's attention. "Why doesn't that girl speak?"

Jin turned to look at Tigress. As Viper and Vixey were offering mild insults to their opponents, Tigress remained silent.

"Oh, her?" Jin told the pig. "It's for her opponents' protection, really. The last time she spoke to a man, the guy was found the next morning brutally tortured and killed. I wouldn't go into details, but it was ugly."

The pig and his goose companion stared at him with fright.

"Then how do you communicate with her?" the goose asked.

"Hm?" Jin began. "Oh, I just don't. Just to keep it safe."

He looked back at the fights again, where the girls just beat a trio of goats. The pig and goose looked at each other in fear.

* * *

The girls continued to strike down each team. After each victory, Vixey kept begging for tougher opponents, but each time, the opposing team was taken down in a matter of seconds.

More and more people began betting that the girls would win. But the bear kept eyeing them.

* * *

"You know," Jin began again, "this is the Da Brothers' Arena. Who are the Da Brothers? How many are there?"

"Oh, you're asking about them?" the pig told him. "The bear supervising is Rong Da, the younger of the two. As for Ning, the older, we haven't seen him."

"I heard that when someone gets past all the challengers, they get to fight him," the goose said. "But that's just what I heard."

Jin nodded, looking back at the fights. Then he turned back to the pig and goose.

"Speaking of things we've heard," he started, "did you hear about the Jade Palace? I knew there was something up with those guys!"

The pig did a spit-take.

"You mean they're true?" he asked. "I couldn't believe it when I heard!"

"He said he heard it," the goose said, "not that it really is true. I'd eat my own feathers if it was true."

"If it isn't true," Jin began, "then who started those rumors?"

"I heard it from around here," the pig answered.

"Well, I heard it from Rong Da himself," a passing wolf told them. "He said he was there in person to stop them. Also said he was great friends with Ruili, too. Him and his brother."

When the wolf left, Jin and the pig turned to each other.

"Then I guess it really is true," the pig said. "You were right."

"Well," the goose started, jumping off his seat, "better find something to make feathers taste better."

He walked away.

"That's why I don't make promises like that," the pig whispered.

Jin nodded again. But now, he thought over the situation they'd plunged into. If they got discovered, they possibly wouldn't be able to escape.

* * *

The girls defeated another three opponents, one right after the other. The crowd cheered wildly as the girls retreated to their side again. Rong stood up.

"Now, it's time for the final opponent, who needs no allies!" the bear proclaimed. "Introducing, for the first time since this arena opened, the great mass of pain himself, Ning Da!"

The crowd got much louder than before. There was a roar and a huge dark figure jumped from above and landed on the arena, opposite the girls. Ning was certainly larger than his brother. He let loose a huge roar and readied to fight. It was here, looking between the brothers that Tigress realized the painful truth. The bears had been with Ruili when they were accused. Viper and Vixey seemed to have realized the same thing. One slip up and they'd be captured.

"Begin!" Rong cried.

This time, it was Ning who dashed forward immediately. The girls evaded and landed attack after attack. Either the bear was impervious to pain, or the attacks did close to nothing.

Vixey yelped when she felt a paw swipe at her middle, throwing her against a wall and knocking the air out of her lungs. She fell to the ground and stayed down, trying to breathe again.

The crowd cheered and gasped at the same time. This was the first time anyone could touch any of the girls.

Tigress and Viper continued to evade. They tried to immobilize him with their ribbons and sashes, but this only resulted in the loss of their weapons. As Viper zoomed around the bear, she felt an enormous paw grab her by the neck. She tried to strike with her tail, but Ning suddenly threw her at the wall like a dart to a dartboard. Her face striking the wall would have been painful enough, if the rest of her body didn't come right after. She fell right on top of Vixey, who recovered partially from her defeat.

The crowd screamed. Two were down. It was only a matter of time before the last went down as well.

"One remains," Ning growled. "When will you fall?"

"That depends on you," Tigress growled right back.

The pig next to Jin squealed and raced out the door, leaving those nearby in the crowd looking at each other in confusion.

"Answer a few questions for me and I may consider it," Tigress continued.

"Then ask away," Ning growled before launching another attack.

Tigress jumped up and punched him in the nose, jumping out of the way of his furious blows.

"Where did Ruili come from?" she began.

She ducked as Ning's punch hit the wall behind her, getting stuck.

"She came from China!" he roared, tugging free his fist. "From a place you don't know of!"

They exchanged hits, only Tigress blocking.

"What does she want with the Masters of the Jade Palace?" she continued, landing a blow to his gut.

Ning landed a blow to the middle of Tigress's left upper arm that jarred it, making her feel it from the tips of the fingers on that hand to her other shoulder. It made her pause for a fraction of a second before dodging another attack.

"She wants to show even the strong can fall!" Ning shouted, slamming down on where she'd been just a second ago.

Tigress rolled away from another attack.

"Answer me one more question!" she told him.

The bear roared and swiped at her, finding that she'd appeared behind him.

"Why are you telling me this so freely?" Tigress asked quietly.

"Because it doesn't matter if you know or don't know," Ning said, "Master Tigress."

Tigress froze. Suddenly, Ning was bearing down on her, punching and swiping. She blocked frantically, but one particular attack caught her off-guard and threw her into the wall, crashing to the ground in defeat.

The crowd gasped at the sudden defeat. Those that had bid against the girls cheered and whistled while the others moaned and grumbled as they paid up.

Viper and Vixey helped Tigress up, who appeared to be in a daze.

"Are you okay?" Vixey asked.

"Yes," Tigress answered quietly, keeping her act up. "We need to leave. Now."

They quickly got Tigress up the stairs and toward the door. Tigress looked back in time to see that they were quickly being overtaken by the brothers' guards.

"Stop!" Ning commanded. "Traitors to the empire!"

The whole crowd gasped. But the girls didn't stop. Instead, they dropped the act and fled in full speed. Those around Jin looked immediately toward him, but found an empty seat.

"After them!" Rong shouted.

The crowd spilled into the town. There was an immediate search made in the town and the forests nearby. But their search ended in a failure. They were nowhere to be found.


	6. Revelation

**So sorry for the really long wait! I've been going insane with the new trailer for Kung Fu Panda 3, but here's a new chapter for you awesome people! I will make a serious effort to upload on a regular basis!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

_Chapter Six: Revelation_

Tigress watched the campfire numbly. The others sat in silence. The sun had long since gone down, and no one had a thought about sleep.

"Are you sure you're okay, Tigress?" Vixey asked. "You sort of took a bad hit back there."

"I'm fine," Tigress answered before they sank back into silence.

It was a moment or two before Vixey spoke up again.

"You know what?" the fox announced. "I'm going to make a great dinner for tonight. Who's with me?"

Everyone but Tigress answered with half-hearted cheers.

"Hey!" Vixey started. "Are you saying my cooking's bad?"

"No, we're not," Viper told her. "Everyone's just tired from today and the news we got. I'll help you find what you need."

"Sure, I'll go, too," Crane piped up.

"Count me in," Mantis added.

Monkey and Jin also stood to help. But Po sat, watching Tigress.

Vixey was about to ask if they wanted to come as well, but stopped herself.

"We'll be back," she said before disappearing with the others into the darkness.

Po looked back at Tigress. She definitely seemed tired, or at least upset.

"Worrying about home?" he asked.

Tigress let out a quiet sigh.

"I guess so," she said softly. "I feel we should have returned home. I can't stand feeling hopeless."

"You and me both," Po told her. "Why don't you use your Seeing ability? I'm sure it'll come in handy."

Tigress looked at him.

"I can't," she said. "The only times I've cast my presence like that were with the help of candles."

"You can't say you can't until you try," Po suggested.

Tigress thought about it for a moment.

"If you think about home a lot," Po continued, "you can imagine you're there."

Tigress stood up.

"Okay," she said, "I'll try."

She made a ready stance and closed her eyes. She imagined the candles were right in front of her. She began her technique, opening her eyes near its end. When she finished, she froze. Po saw that her eyes were unfocused.

"I knew it," he whispered to himself.

"Um, what's going on with Tigress?"

Po turned to see the others returning with various herbs and berries.

"She's Seeing," he said simply.

"Are you serious?" Vixey asked with a gasp. "Is she supposed to look all weird like this?"

"Pretty much," Po responded. "Is that all you guys found?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Vixey said. "Still, a little is better than nothing."

Po was about to answer that, to him, little was nothing, when Tigress came out of her trance. She stumbled backward and caught herself before she could fall. She sat down on the small boulder behind her, looking very troubled.

"The Jade Palace has been taken," she said at once.

Seven jaws dropped. Then everyone began blubbering at the same time.

"What- what happened?!" Vixey cried.

"Shifu lost?!" Crane started. "He can't have!"

"When I began Seeing," Tigress began, "I saw long lines of those strange golden cats we fought, marching up to the Palace. There was nothing the servants could do. They marched right in to Shifu's study, where he faced them."

"Then what?" Po asked.

"Then my vision cut out," Tigress said. "I wanted desperately to see what happened, but at the same time I didn't."

The Masters looked solemnly to each other.

"What do we do now?" Viper asked.

"We make our way to the Emperor," Tigress said. "If we can't protect the Valley or the Jade Palace, we'll protect him."

"But what if..." Monkey started. "What if Shifu was...?"

He couldn't finish. Everyone understood what he was saying.

"Then I lead you as I always have," Tigress answered, "and once we return, the Valley will look to me as the new leader."

The others were surprised.

"When we returned from fighting Wang," she continued, "Shifu told he that my level of Kung Fu was beyond his. He asked me to be his successor in the event of his passing."

The others still remained silent.

"I am the next Grand Master of the Jade Palace," she said humbly.

The others were silent for a second or two.

"I... I can't believe I didn't realize that," Vixey started quietly. "So on to the Imperial City?"

"And then on to save the Valley of Peace," Tigress finished.

The she cried out and put a paw on her neck. When she withdrew it, she was holding a small dart.

Everyone turned to where the dart had come from and found a small, dark figure hanging upside-down in a tree. He cackled and speedily flew away.

"Let's get out of here!" Monkey cried.

Crane kicked dirt over the fire and they all started to run. But then Tigress came to an abrupt stop.

"I can't see anything," she told them, panicked. "My night vision is shot."

"Then stay close!" Vixey cried.

They began to flee, remaining within a few inches of each other for Tigress's sake. She could barely sense where the others were and the little that she could see was beginning to distort. She was worried that the drug would overtake her before they could all get away, making things much tougher for everyone.

They passed through a forest, sounds of many figures rustling through the bushes on either side.

"Sounds like we'll have to fight our way through!" Mantis cried.

"Then do it!" Tigress ordered.

"Punch right!" Vixey suddenly shouted.

Tigress obeyed immediately and made contact with an unknown figure, sending it flying. She began hearing sounds of fighting. However, she was now completely blind.

"Are we still running?" she shouted.

"Yes!" came Viper's cry. "Duck!"

Tigress ducked and rolled, the tip of her tail brushing past a thick, low-hanging branch. Before even a second was over, she was back on her feet.

Her friends continued to shout orders for her to immediately follow for her own protection while they, too repelled their opponents. After they ran quite a ways, things got very quiet.

"I... I think we can stop here..." Monkey said, breathing heavily.

They all stopped near a cliff wall, nearly overshadowed by the rock formation above them.

"We shouldn't rest long," Jin told them. "Five seconds and we have to leave again. Tigress? Tigress!"

Everyone saw her blindly reach for the cliff wall and sink down beside it. They all dove at her and tried to rouse her, but she was unconscious.

Vixey began to panic.

"This isn't good!" she started as Jin picked up their fallen friend. "This seriously limits our chances!"

"Calm down or you'll get us all caught!" Mantis snapped.

"Shh!" Viper said suddenly.

Everyone got quiet. They all heard the slightest noise.

"Move!" Crane told them.

The Masters all bolted in the same direction, but in the chaos that ensued, no one saw if or when another fell. They continued to run, trusting that the others would make it to safety.

Vixey slid into a small cave and peeked around the corner at where she'd just come from.

"I think we're safe," she said, turning.

She was shocked that no one else was there.

She looked around with wide eyes.

"Guys?" she whimpered.

She was all alone.

She started stepping backwards in fear. Then she felt a large hand cover her mouth and she felt a dagger sink into her lower back. She was barely able to yelp. The dagger was withdrawn and the hand let her go. The fox sank to the ground, barely holding onto consciousness as she lay whimpering.

"Tell her we caught them," she heard someone say before she lost her grip on reality.


	7. Flames On Water

**I apologize for the long wait, but I was away from my computer for nearly a month. Enjoy!  
**

* * *

_Chapter Seven: Flames on Water_

Something was rocking. There was the sound of water sloshing nearby. As the Masters regained consciousness, they saw that they were chained to a pillar in an inner cabin on a boat. Six-point acupressure cuffs were holding their hands, if they had them, and no one could move more than an inch or two.

Someone stepped toward them. Tigress looked up at Ning Da.

"So you finally caught us," she growled somewhat groggily.

The bear narrowed his eyes at her and smacked her across the face. The other Masters cringed. Had she been any weaker, they were sure her neck would have snapped. Tigress merely looked back at him as if nothing had happened.

"You don't deserve to live," Ning Da growled. "You are all treasonous murderers who couldn't care less to revile against your Emperor."

"We all know that invitation was a fake," Tigress said.

Ning Da came closer to her face.

"Was it?" he asked.

He then stepped back.

"Keep an eye on them," he told the guards. "If even one escapes, kill them or be killed."

He turned and left the cabin. The guards eyed them before leaving and taking their posts just outside the door.

The Masters sat in condemned silence before realizing something was wrong. They heard heavy breathing and looked to see who it belonged to. Vixey sat there, not moving, and seemed to be having trouble breathing.

"Vixey!" Tigress asked. "What's wrong?"

The fox took a short while before speaking.

"I... I think I'm... sick," she said quietly, her voice shaking.

"Did they poison you?" Crane asked.

"N-no," Vixey answered. "When... when they kn-knocked me out... they st-stabbed me with... with a tipped d-dagger."

She paused to catch her breath.

"I d-don't think they... took measures to... st-stop the bleeding..."

Tigress felt her heart drop. How long had she been bleeding?

"Are you still bleeding?" Viper asked.

"No," Vixey replied again. "I pr-probably stopped... after a wh-while..."

"Is there anything we can do?" Mantis asked.

"There's s-something in... in my bag," Vixey said. "But we can't... reach it..."

"What do we do?" Po asked. "We can't just sit here!"

"We have no other choice," Tigress said. "We can only wait."

They sat in a tense silence, listening to Vixey's breathing. Over time, she didn't get better, but she didn't get worse either.

Everyone's thoughts were interrupted when Po broke the silence.

"What's that smell?" he asked.

The others except Vixey smelled the air.

"It smells like... plums," Viper said. "It sort of reminds me of-"

"Plum tea," Tigress finished. "I was right."

Everyone looked at her.

"What do you mean you were right?" Mantis asked.

"When we were last in town," Tigress began, "I saw someone selling two bottles of plum tea. It was pricey and the person selling it was a little shifty. I bought them anyway, just in case something like this happened. The guards must have looked in my bag and found them."

The rest of the Furious Five and Jin all brightened up. Po only looked confused.

"What is plum tea?" he asked.

"It's a powerful drink that's actually illegal to make and sell," Tigress answered. "It actually isn't tea, but the name caught on. It's so strong that one cup of it would make you fall asleep and never wake up."

Po's jaw dropped.

"So we aren't gonna die?" he asked.

"Not tonight," Tigress replied. "Viper, how's the cage coming?"

Everyone turned to look at Viper, who was in the act of picking Mantis's lock.

"Almost... got it... there!" she announced.

Mantis burst out of the door. He broke Viper's cuff and headed for Tigress. As soon as she was free, she freed Vixey. She carried the nearly limp fox to the bags that had been previously out of reach and searched Vixey's bag.

"What does it look like?" she asked.

"Vial... length of... my middle finger to palm..." Vixey answered. "Clear w-with very... very dark red... stuff in the bottom..."

Tigress checked each vial until she found the one Vixey had described.

"Sh-shake it... f-first," the fox told her.

Tigress did as she was told. The liquid inside turned from clear to bright red very quickly. She unstopped it and handed it to Vixey.

"Th-this'll... prob'ly m-make m-me... pass out," the fox said.

"It doesn't matter," Tigress told her. "Just drink it. We'll handle it from here."

Vixey did a tired nod and downed the liquid in one gulp. She looked like she was about to vomit.

"T-tastes... awf..." she started.

Then she promptly lost consciousness. The vial fell from her hand and shattered on the floor.

The other Masters were freed and ran to pick up their bags. When everyone was ready to leave, they all crept to the door. Viper checked if the coast was clear.

"Good to go," she whispered.

They left the room and headed for a nearby staircase. Before they got there, they stopped right before the doorway to another room with an open door. Tigress looked inside.

Guards were everywhere, sleeping in chairs or passed out on the floor. Both bottles were lying on their sides, one on the table and one on the floor, rolling a little with the rocking of the boat. The one on the table left a lavender-ish liquid near its mouth.

The other Masters looked inside.

"You'd think the third one would notice," Monkey said.

"They're all out," Jin told them. "So's the big guy himself."

Ning Da lay sprawled on the floor, a cup still in his partially closed hand. It still had some liquid in it.

"Let's get going," Tigress said. "There's a chance that some of them didn't have enough to stay asleep."

"Come on," Viper added.

They all got to the top of the stairs. They saw two doors: one that led outside and another that led to a room with crates of explosives.

"How badly did they want us dead?" Crane asked.

"Very badly, apparently," Jin answered.

They left the cabin and walked onto the deck. There was a dingy near the edge of the boat.

"This would probably be what they'd put us on with all the explosives," Mantis said. "We'd probably have an easier time escaping on that thing right before they'd try to blow us up."

"They coulda knocked us out before then," Po told him.

"Oh," Mantis said. "Good point."

"Let's lower it," Tigress said. "Jin, take Vixey. I need to do something."

"Do what?" Po asked.

Tigress turned toward the cabin.

"I need to make sure they won't follow us," she answered simply. "Get far away from the boat. I'll make sure I'll have enough time to escape."

When the other seven Masters began rowing away, Tigress ran for the cabin. She dumped the crates of explosives and put them all in a big pile. Then she found a long string to use as a fuse. She tied the fuses of several sticks of dynamite together with the string and estimated how long it would have to be to give her enough time. She measured it out and cut the string. Double-checking the arrangement, she lit the fuse.

She turned to escape and was hit in the face by an unknown force. She fell backward, but jumped right back up, throwing punches at her sudden attacker.

* * *

On the dingy, the other Masters were getting nervous.

"What's taking her so long?" Mantis asked.

* * *

When the fighting stopped, Tigress saw five limp guards sprawled across the floor. She turned to look at the fuse and immediately ran for the deck.

* * *

Po craned his neck to see what was going on.

"There she is!" Crane cried.

Po barely caught sight of her before the ship detonated.

"Tigress!" he cried.

"I just saw her!" Viper shouted. "She just landed in the water! Look for her!"

Everyone who was able looked on their sides of the dingy. Po nearly shrieked when a striped hand shot out of the water and almost took hold of his face. He grabbed the hand and pulled before it could disappear below the water again.

Tigress climbed into the dingy, coughing up water. The others waited until she'd almost stopped coughing before asking questions.

"What happened?" Viper asked.

"We thought you had enough time to get away," Monkey said.

"Not all of the guards were drunk," Tigress answered. "Some were playing dead. But they're gone now."

Everyone looked back at the flaming boat.

"Let's get out of here," Jin said. "Someone will see the flames."

"Let's go," Tigress agreed.

They began paddling for the shore.


	8. Disguise and Detect

**Sorry for the long wait. I'm finally getting back to writing and publishing, so please enjoy!  
**

* * *

_Chapter Eight: Disguise and Detect_

"Rise and shine, everybody!"

Tigress jumped as she came out of her dreamless sleep. She looked up at Vixey beaming down at her.

"Nice to know you're feeling better," she grumbled, slowly getting up.

"I'm feeling better," Vixey told her, "but I still have that terrible taste in my mouth! Yuck!"

The Masters had taken shelter in a dense forest near a small town for the night.

"Running low on food again," Po said moodily after checking their supplies.

"We're near a small town," Crane said. "I recognize the scenery."

"I looked around before we stopped for the night," Mantis said. "There are soldiers everywhere."

There was a moment of silence as everyone began thinking.

"Well, we could do Stealth Mode," Po suggested. "Then we could -!"

"No," answered all of the Five sternly before he could say anything else.

Vixey snickered.

"Or," she started, "we could get out my disguise kit again. I still have a few tricks up my sleeve..."

The other warriors looked at each other. Last time wasn't that great of a success. But maybe this time would be different.

* * *

A peddler sat with their back against a building, plucking the strings of a mandolin. They were dressed in a dark brown cloak, brown gloves, and black boots. Whether they were male or female was unknown to those passing by. An occasional villager would drop a coin or two into the small wooden bowl near the peddler's feet, prompting a nod from the poor soul.

Two soldiers stopped in front of the peddler. They watched as a small rabbit child put a coin in the bowl and received a nod from the peddler.

"Do you have a permit to come here?" one of the soldiers asked.

The peddler stopped playing and cocked their head slightly.

"Are you mute?" the other soldier asked gruffly. "Or are you deaf?"

The peddler looked back down at the mandolin and continued playing.

"I'm thinking deaf," the first soldier whispered to his comrade. "That tune he's playing is terrible."

The peddler struck a bad note, making the first soldier flinch.

The second soldier suddenly lunged forward and grabbed the peddler by the front of their cloak and held them in the air. He tried to look at the peddler's face, but he couldn't see anything.

"Why are you here?" he demanded. "I know you don't belong here!"

"Put him down!" the other soldier hissed. "You're getting some angry looks."

The soldier looked around at the murmuring crowd and back at the peddler, who hung almost limp. They didn't seem disturbed at this event. The soldier shoved them back to the ground. The peddler simply took their spot again and returned to mandolin playing. Five villagers at once came forward and put at least two coins each into the bowl, prompting another nod.

The second soldier fumed. He stormed away with his comrade.

The peddler looked up at the soldiers with golden eyes.

* * *

"Oh, Bernard! Look at this!"

A merchant weasel looked up from his merchandise at a beautiful golden fox in a light pink kimono with white lining and a white ribbon around her waist. Her skirt had a gradient and became a darker pink as it went down toward her feet. Her parasol had the same style.

There was a panda with her. He seemed to tower over her. He wore a farmer's uniform and had a black mustache under his nose. A straw hat hid his eyes from view.

The fox picked up one of the souvenirs from the merchant's stall and admired it. She showed it to the panda.

"Isn't it marvelous?" she cried.

"Sure it is, milady," the panda said in a deep voice.

"You can have it if you want, madam," the merchant said smoothly. "I can even discount it if you'd like."

"Oh, you're too kind!" the fox told him. "You can call me Lady Yiren. Oh, Bernard, isn't he so sweet?"

"I'd be careful around him," Bernard warned.

"Careful?" the merchant asked. "I wouldn't dare harm such a beautiful young lady."

"He's saying careful," Yiren told him, "because I'm to be married to a Count's son. Daddy doesn't take kindly to other men trying to draw me away. Isn't that right, Bernard?"

Bernard nodded.

"Well then," the merchant said, "your daddy doesn't have to know anything. All he'd hear about was that you just bought a little souvenir from a shop here."

"But I couldn't get a souvenir!" Yiren continued. "Then Daddy would know I was here! We're just taking a break from all this wearisome travel... And I get to do some sightseeing. Daddy trusts Bernard to protect me wherever I go. Isn't that right, Bernard?"

"That's right, milady," Bernard agreed. "I've protected Lady Yiren since the day she was born."

"Isn't he sweet?" Yiren asked the merchant.

"Of course!" the weasel agreed. "I don't just have these little figurines, you know. I also have candies, candles, and..."

* * *

"You just need work for one day?" the boar asked.

"Yep," croaked an old peppery gray crane. "Jus' passin' through. An' I figure this place needs a good cleanin'."

"Well," the boar told him, "the broom's near the bathrooms. I need the floor swept clean. If it sparkles, I'll pay ya extra."

The old bird nodded and limped toward a nearby door. He was soon limping around tables, sweeping up fallen table scraps and crumpled napkins. Despite his apparent leg injury, he seemed to be moving around just fine. The boar guessed he'd had that injury for a while.

The old crane swept and swept. Occasionally, he heard a few words from some of the regulars at the tavern.

"Didja hear?" one pig asked his friend. "There's been some trouble up in the Valley of Peace."

"Who hasn't heard?" the goose replied. "There's been all sorts of trouble up there for thousands of years. The name oughta be changed. Maybe the Valley of a Thousand Wars? Hehehe..."

The old crane didn't pay much attention. He just focused on his task. Soon, he was just trying to sweep up all the dust that he could.

"I think I've heard that the Masters of the Jade Palace are on the run," a rabbit said. "Makes you wonder what they did. Normally, they're the ones chasing the bandits and villains. Now they're being chased."

"I'm so confused," a goat told her. "It was all so sudden. You think something's up?"

"I don't know," the rabbit said. "But I also heard someone's stepping up to protect the emperor. The strongest warriors in all of China are on the run, so someone has to protect him!"

The old crane still didn't pay any attention. It wasn't his job to butt in, now was it? He just kept sweeping and sweeping. He happened to stop moving in time to avoid bumping into a wobbling pig, who instead tripped over a table leg. The drink in his cup spilled onto the floor.

"'S all right," the crane mumbled. "I'll clean it up."

The pig wobbled as he stood up and walked over to the bartender. The boar shouted at him and pointed at the door. The pig had tried to argue, but couldn't find the words. He stumbled out of the tavern without another sound.

The old crane was busy at work clearing up the mess. Soon enough, it was as if the spill never happened. He moved on, continuing to sweep, determined to find every last speck of dust in the tavern.

* * *

The villagers never suspected anything was wrong except with the soldiers occupying their small town. While the soldiers weren't cruel or wasteful with their supplies, there were those scrutinizing glares they usually gave to passersby. But the soldiers didn't often look up – only when there was the occasional sound of someone possibly jumping of a nearby roof, flying by almost overhead, and landing on a different roof. But they never caught just where the sound was coming from. The sound was ever so slight.

A group of three guards walked through a narrow alley and all looked up as they heard that same sound again. Then a cough brought them to look down at someone almost at their feet.

There was an elderly tiger, worn down by age, trial, and whatever else seemed to happen in his lifetime, wearing tattered, oversized, and dirty clothes. He lay slumped against a nearby wall, snoozing fitfully.

The guards were about to wake him and find why he was there when a flask slipped out of his hand and rolled a little on the ground. They rolled their eyes at the old drunk and continued onward.

Up on the roof nearby, Viper watched over the tiger carefully when the soldiers had passed by. She hadn't known they were right there or she wouldn't have jumped right then. But Jin's distraction worked well.

"He's gonna have a huge crick in his neck by the time we're done here," Mantis whispered, suddenly appearing.

Viper simply nodded and they parted ways, patrolling to make sure their friends weren't in trouble.

* * *

The two soldiers stood in front of an inn, bored out of their minds.

"Why do we have to be here?" the first asked. "Nothing happens here. Nothing _will_ happen here."

"I still have a feeling about that peddler..." the second mumbled.

The first guard sighed heavily.

"That again?" he asked. "He's just a peddler! A homeless guy who has nothing better to do with his life because he's broke! Leave the man alone!"

"You're taking this job too lightly," the second guard growled. "We're supposed to be suspicious about everyone, got it? Any problems are to be dealt with and reported before the day's over. And that peddler wasn't in this town before today."

"So he's a wandering peddler," the first reasoned. "He'll probably be going to the next village after today. People do that all the time! In fact, it looks like he's leaving now!"

The second guard spun around, seeing the peddler as they walked slowly and dejectedly out of the town. The mandolin was close to dragging on the ground.

"Give me a second," he said as he started to walk off.

"Come on! Leave the man alone!" the first guard told him.

The peddler turned at the sound of the plea. Once again, their face was hidden as if there was only a shadow inside that cloak.

"Where are you going?" the second soldier demanded.

The peddler shrugged.

"Answer me!" the soldier barked, grabbing the peddler by the front of their cloak.

The peddler shrugged again.

The soldier was about to tear the cloak off when there was a shriek a distance behind him. He looked to see a tiny green figure jumping out of the way of a villager's grabbing hands and escape. The sight was enough for him to drop the peddler.

"After that bug!" he shouted.

But then Mantis disappeared as quickly as he'd appeared. Then it occurred to the second soldier that it was likely a diversion and turned to look at the peddler. The only thing on the ground was the mandolin.

"They're in this town!" he shouted. "Get them!"

And he and his companion ran after the peddler, wherever they'd run off to.

* * *

Tigress heard the cry as she crouched in the bushes not far from where she'd disappeared. She waited until the guards had passed before making her move.

She ran as quickly as she could and jump kicked a sturdy tree. There was a loud _SNAP!_ and the tree became a splintered stump.

* * *

"Yiren", "Bernard", and the merchant turned to look at where the sound had come from. Several birds were flying away.

"What was that?" the merchant asked.

"That was my daddy," Vixey told him solemnly. "Come on, Bernard! He must never know I was here!"

Po nodded and they rushed away from the wide-eyed merchant.

* * *

Tigress guessed she had at least five guards on her trail. She ran on all fours in a straight line so she could get as far into the woods as possible to cut down on whatever help these soldiers could receive. Suddenly, she skidded to a halt, turned on the soldiers, and crashed into them, sending them into a confused panic. Before long, they were all unconscious, well underprepared for their task.

Tigress disappeared into the bushes before she could be sighted again.

* * *

The other Masters gathered almost a mile outside of the town perimeters, waiting for their leader to return.

It was silent, then Tigress suddenly appeared right behind Vixey, causing the fox to stifle a shriek.

"Anything?" Tigress asked, ignoring Vixey.

"Nothing from the regulars," Crane answered, his voice returning to normal.

"Or the shoppers or merchants," Vixey said. "What about you?"

Tigress handed her a small leather purse.

"Nearly full," she said. "It should last us for a few more days."

Po looked rather unhappy.

"Wish I could grow a mustache," he mumbled as he returned the fake to Vixey.

Smiles crawled onto everyone's faces, happy to have even a little bit of humor from the panda, whether he meant to make them smile or not. Yet, at the same time, they all felt a little homesick.

"Guys," Mantis started, "trouble incoming."

Crane removed his hat and peered out of the bushes, his thin head and neck nearly impossible to see in the dark forest from a distance.

"That looks like more guards than there were in the village," he whispered. "Word sure travels fast around here."

"So, run or fight?" Po asked.

Jin peered through the bushes at the incoming army.

"I see those cats again," he said. "Until we can find a weakness, we're heavily outmatched."

"I'll create a diversion," Tigress started, "then everyone get out of here. I'll catch up with you when I -!"

"Can't someone else do that?" Vixey interrupted. "You've been taking all the big jobs and keep getting beaten down!"

"As a leader, I choose to do those jobs," Tigress said before the others could speak up. "It's my job to make sure everyone gets away safely."

"Everyone includes you, Tigress," Monkey said.

"That army is huge and those cats are very strong," Viper added. "Are you sure you'll get away in time?"

"Don't worry about me," Tigress ordered. "But if you all fail to get away because of this stupid conversation, you'll have to worry about me tearing you all to shreds. Understand?"

Everyone showed feelings of frustration, worry, and hesitation in their faces. It hadn't helped that Tigress never answered Viper's question.

"Just get away when you have the chance," Tigress said, and then she left.

* * *

A distance from the hiding spot, Tigress simply walked out of the bushes and stood, staring threateningly at the approaching army, just waiting for them to notice her. Several cats broke through the front line and began running for her. She crouched, ready to take off at just the right time...

She shot to her left and disappeared. She reappeared several feet away, jumping from one bush to another. The cats surged after her, following her trail.

* * *

The hiding Masters waited in a tense silence. They'd all frozen when they found the army was so close by. But chasing after the one they could see left them oblivious to any other hiding spots, including occupied ones. They passed right by their targets.

"Go!" Crane whispered.

The Masters headed away from the army, and then looped around, careful to not be seen.

* * *

Tigress ran as fast as she could and then ducked into the bushes again. Completely silent, she watched as several of the strange cats ran past her, intent on capturing their prey.

When everything around her was silent, she snuck through the forest in a different direction. She hid in the bushes once more to check if they'd caught on.

As soon as she turned around, she dove out of the way of an oncoming fist. She rolled and stood up, ready to fight. The leader of the cats stood before her, looking to be in a state of bloodlust.

"Well, well, Master Tigress," she started, "you've surprised me. I honestly didn't expect you'd try that tactic on us. But we've all seen it before."

Tigress was about to make her escape, but was suddenly surrounded by the golden cats. She knew instantly that there was no way out of this. But there was still something she could do...

She feigned and attack and ran up the tree behind her. The leader didn't flinch, but reached out to catch the supposedly fleeing Master. Tigress responded by leaping down from the trees onto the leader's back and attempted a nerve strike. But the leader caught her wrist and threw her off, rolling to a standing position.

"Where are the others?" the pale cat asked. "Don't tell me you've all gone your separate ways."

"What does it matter to you?" Tigress snapped, attempting another blow.

The leader blocked her attack with relative ease and punched, Tigress evading the hit.

"I think you already know that," she answered. "We have a place just for the eight of you. And your master will be there to welcome you."

Tigress froze. They couldn't have possibly...

"You'll have to catch him first," she growled, launching a flurry of blows.

Then she caught the slightest sign of frustration from the pale cat before she blocked every hit. Had she been bluffing?

Then the pale cat suddenly backhanded her. She could barely block it and it knocked her over. She rolled to avoid a jump attack. She leapt to her feet and crossed her arms in front of her face to shield.

She gasped in pain as the punch landed. She felt the bone in her lower arm snap and waves of pain shot up and down her right arm and shoulder. The force of the punch knocked her to the ground again, sending her a foot or two away. She struggled to recover sufficiently from shock as she tried to climb to her feet.

The stronger cat took her by the throat and held her up.

"How does it feel to be so weak, Master Tigress?" she asked tauntingly. "Homeless, hated, injured... How can you stand yourself?"

Tigress struggled to free herself in vain.

"At least I'm not a lying, honorless hypocrite like yourself," she spat.

The other cat became extremely angry and slammed her against a nearby tree, knocking her out.

Her opponent threw her to the ground and snarled at her.

"Take her away!" she hissed. "Now find those other rats!"

A distance away, the other seven Masters had watched the scene with horror. Then, as they were told, they fled.


	9. Friends in Dark Places

**Who's psyched for KFP3?! I can't wait!  
**

**I had a writing rush last time and finished a few chapters! I'll try to publish them every other day until I catch up, so please enjoy!**

* * *

_Chapter Nine: Friends in Dark Places_

Miles deep inside a dark, dense forest was a rather large, foreboding building. Heavily guarded, anyone could tell it was a prison. It had only one floor aboveground, with floor after floor of cells beneath.

A few floors down, a new prisoner had been moved in and the strongest guards were told to guard the door with their lives.

Inside, Tigress stirred from unconsciousness. The back of her head ached from the attack, but then her broken arm seared. She woke completely and tried not to panic. She was in similar confines as Tai Lung was in Chorh-Gom!

While she was struggling to stay calm and conquer her pain, she looked around. This cell was different than the usual kind. The door of the cell was higher up on the wall, requiring stairs to access. Two guards stood at either side of her, ignoring the fact that she'd regained consciousness. But she caught on that they were growing nervous.

The cell door opened, causing the guards to stand at attention. Tigress looked up and saw a small figure descending the stairs. Ruili.

"Welcome home, Tigress," the otter taunted. "I had the room specially made for you. Don't you like it?"

Tigress refused to speak.

"Not feeling chatty?" Ruili continued. "We'll have that attitude changed by tonight. Maybe we should do a few tests... Test one!"

She landed a rather solid blow to the right side of Tigress's face, causing her to stumble to the right and make the chain on her right wrist pull tight on the injured arm. A gasp escaped as she struggled to right herself.

"That sounds more like it," Ruili said, half-amused, "though I would prefer to hear you scream."

"You'll have to try harder than that," Tigress growled quietly, a fire glowing in her angry gold eyes.

Ruili's eyes narrowed.

"We will see," she hissed back.

* * *

Outside the cell, the Masters collected on an overhang, watching the door holding their friend.

"So what now?" Po whispered.

The others remained silent, uncertainty on each face. No one could hear anything inside the cell, but they'd seen Ruili go in, making them fear for Tigress.

Then something caught Jin's eye. He seemed to be watching something intently.

"Have you guys noticed that he's been almost everywhere?" he asked quietly.

The others looked where he was looking at, finding an armored tiger.

"I haven't been paying attention," Crane told him.

"I'll be back," Jin said, and disappeared quickly.

"Wh-where's he going?!" Vixey squeaked. "We need to plan together on how to rescue Tigress!"

"Maybe he's onto something," Viper offered.

"Well, while he's gone, let's start figuring things out," Monkey said.

"If we just bust her out," Mantis started, "we'll have no room for mistakes."

"If we just wait for the best possible chance, we could lose her," Vixey added.

They were silent until Jin came back.

"That guy is the only tiger guard in the entire building," he said. "If we jump him, I can impersonate him and we'll be that much closer to freeing Tigress."

The other Masters were impressed.

"And how'd that really help us in the long run?" Crane asked.

"It's not like you could just have her handed off to you to transport her somewhere else," Vixey said. "She's too dangerous for just one guard."

Then she thought for a moment.

"Wait! Wait, wait, wait!" she started, lighting up. "I've got it! Listen up..."

The others gathered around her, listening to what she had to say.

* * *

The tiger guard kept patrolling, trudging along almost sleepily. Certain this would be another uneventful day, he neglected to look around. Then he heard a sound in a nearby hallway. Rolling his eyes and suspecting a newbie's clumsy actions, he drew his spear and walked casually to the hall. He took a few steps inside, looked around, and turned to leave.

As soon as he'd done so, someone from behind wrapped a cloth around his face and gagged him. He dropped his spear, hoping the sound would alert others and struggled to free himself. No sound came from the fallen spear, and he started to have a strange taste in his mouth. It felt like it was numbing his tongue, then his mouth, and then his head started to spin. His eyes rolled upward and he lost consciousness.

Vixey struggled to lay him down gently, so his armor wouldn't clang on the floor.

"I was right," she said, relieved when the others came to help, "he is pretty big."

They pulled off his armor and dragged him down the hall and behind some boxes. Jin put on the armor and stood at attention. Either he was tall or the guard was short for how round he was. The difference in their clothing was indistinguishable behind the armor. Jin's face was also masked behind the helmet.

"It might be cramped in here," he told Viper, patting the belly of the armor, "but there should be enough room."

Viper slid in and curled up. The others observed that she couldn't be seen.

"It isn't too cramped, Jin," the snake said, her voice muffled and echoing slightly. "I hope this works."

Jin held his staff as the guard had held his spear. Vixey frowned.

"I bet you could make up a story for that," she said, gesturing to the bare tip.

Jin shrugged. He started walking out of the hall.

"Don't forget me!" Mantis said suddenly, jumping into the armor as well.

Po, Crane, Monkey, and Vixey climbed back up to the overhang and watched Jin leave.

No guards suspected a thing. The other Masters suspected he'd practiced a lot of mimicry in the past, since he'd had so little time to study the guard. He copied everything from the length of his stride to the slight slouch in his posture. He even copied the tiny limp in his right leg that the others still didn't catch.

Jin walked right up to Tigress's cell. The two guards standing watch looked to be dozing off. Jin cleared his throat gruffly, causing them both to jump. They stood at attention.

"Yessir!" they both said.

"Dozing off a bit, are you?" Jin asked, altering his voice to that of the guard's.

"N-not at all!" one guard said before the other could speak. "Well... It's been a long shift. Nothing's happened so far..."

"I'm feeling particularly gracious today," Jin started, "so why don't I take your place? Just for today."

The first guard brightened considerably while the other seemed upset at his own mistake of not speaking up first.

"W-will you?" the first asked. "Thank you! I'll even give you half my pay for today!"

He strode off with a skip in his step. Jin took his place next to the door.

"Really, man?" the other guard started.

"I could probably do something for you, too," Jin said, appearing to think.

The other guard scoffed.

"Like what?" he asked.

Jin thrust his palm at him and Viper jumped out, smacking him full in the face and knocking him out. She wrapped herself around him and made him stand up as if he were still conscious. She made sure no part of her body was visible.

As if nothing had happened, they simply stood there. They even waved to the two guards that happened to pass by.

"Your turn, Mantis," Jin whispered out of the corner of his mouth.

Mantis crawled out of his hiding spot and climbed the wall, into pipes leading into the cell. He walked until he came to the opening, looking down on the inhabitants of the room. He arrived just in time to see Tigress get hit again, though she didn't seem bothered by it at all.

Ruili became frustrated.

"You will speak by the time this day is over!" she hissed. "If you don't, we will torture you until you have no will to live and kill you in front of everyone you hold dear!"

"Sounds like a picnic," Tigress murmured.

In her fury, Ruili drew a dagger and slashed out at the prisoner, cutting her cheek. Tigress didn't seem fazed at all.

"Don't get cocky," the otter growled.

She whirled around and stomped to the cell door. It clanged shut loudly behind her.

After a few seconds, Mantis made his move. He tapped on the pipes so they echoed. The two guards looked around to see what was making the noise.

_Ooooooooooo..._

_Oooooooooooooooooo..._

Tigress immediately tensed up, fear visible on every inch of her face. She knew exactly who that was.

"Wh-who's there?" one of the guards started.

He and his colleague held their spears threateningly at the voice. They couldn't tell where the sound was coming from, since it bounced off the barren walls of the cell.

"Reeevenge..." came the voice. "Reeeeevenge is miiiiiiine!"

Tigress knew exactly who Mantis was imitating and could tell it was a horrible impersonation. But the guards didn't know because they'd never come into contact with the real deal.

"Who are you?!" the second guard almost screamed. "What do you want revenge for?!"

"Revenge for my imprisonment!" Mantis shouted. "I will destroy all who get in my way!"

The guards were literally shaking in their boots.

"I AM THE GHOST OF TAI LUNG!" Mantis proclaimed.

The guards screamed, dropping their spears and trying to hide behind anything they could find, which was barely anything at all.

They continued to scream when Ruili came back. She glared at the two cowering guards and stormed over to them.

"What the devil are you doing?!" she shouted.

"Th-the gh-ghost!" one of the guards screamed. "It's c-coming for us!"

The other was sobbing hysterically.

Ruili was about to strike out at them when Jin cleared his throat from the doorway.

"Maybe we could take their places?" he suggested. "We aren't scared of any gh-gh-ghosts that could be lurking about."

The two cowards were too traumatized to be offended by Jin's remark. Instead, they agreed wholeheartedly to the switch.

"Fine then!" Ruili snapped. "Just switch! If I'm called back before I decide my break is over, I'll have your heads! Understand?"

The cowards nodded enthusiastically and raced for the door of the cell. Jin and Viper's guard walked calmly past Ruili, as if all this was normal. Ruili slammed the cell door behind her.

"Well, that was a good show," Mantis started as he jumped down from the pipes. "I wasn't even trying!"

When Mantis leapt out of his hiding spot, Tigress knew immediately who else was there.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, a slight anger in her voice. "You shouldn't have come after me."

Jin got out of the armor and Viper let her guard fall to the floor as they both turned to help their friend.

"We couldn't just leave you here," Viper said, starting to pick the lock.

"Getting you back is worth the risk," Jin said.

"Am I worth losing China?" Tigress asked.

The lock clicked and the mechanism fell apart. Jin broke the cuffs and Tigress almost fell to the floor, exhausted.

"Looks like a serious break," Mantis said, very carefully prodding Tigress's arm. "It'll take a while to heal."

Jin took Tigress's uninjured arm and lifted her up, putting her arm over his shoulder. He nodded to Mantis, who then climbed back into the pipes.

On the other side, he waved to his remaining friends. They all waited for the next patrol to pass and then rushed the two frightened guards. They fell without a sound.

Vixey knocked on the door and it swung open seconds later, Viper swiftly picking it. They all evaded patrols until they got to the same hallway they'd ambushed the tiger guard, stopping to allow Tigress a break.

"You're all idiots for rescuing me," she growled. "If you'd just continued without me, we wouldn't all be trapped down here."

"We'll get out," Vixey assured her. "Trust me, we'll -!"

"She may be right," Jin said solemnly.

Sure enough, several guards were alerted to the missing prisoner. The halls were very lively, causing the Masters to hide behind the boxes they'd hidden the other guard.

The guard had begun to regain consciousness, but Tigress kicked him in the face, knocking him out again.

Vixey tried to think of what to do next, coming to a blank.

"Any ideas, Jin?" she asked.

Jin was silent.

"We're going to be found," he said. "They're starting to look for us."

Everyone was silent for a little, growing unnerved as guards surged past.

"This is a narrow hallway with only one way in or out," Tigress started. "If we're going to be found out, we might as well attract them to us and defeat as many as we can. Viper and Mantis, scout for a way out and keep watch for Ruili or those cats. As soon as even one of them shows up, we might as well die trying to escape."

Everyone looked at each other.

"Po, Monkey," Jin started, "stay here with me and we'll keep them down here. Crane and Vixey, get Tigress up to the overhang and get as far as you can. Viper and Mantis, you heard her."

Everyone leapt into action. Viper climbed to the overhang, wrapped her tail around Tigress, and lifted her up before doing her duty. Po, Monkey, and Jin rearranged the boxes so no one would notice who was hiding behind them, if there was anyone. As soon as it was only the three of them and the unconscious guard in the hallway, Jin threw the guard's spear toward the main hall, imbedding the spearhead into the opposite wall and attracting attention.

As soon as guards stormed in, Po, Monkey, and Jin charged, knocking out dozens in very little time.

* * *

"You all right?" Vixey asked when Tigress gasped slightly for the umpteenth time.

"Shut up and keep going," the tiger growled.

They'd gone quite a distance when all seemed silent in the halls.

"Looks like they've attracted the entire building," Crane said.

Then an arrow flew past his beak. He assumed fighting stance, facing the archers firing from the ground.

"Go! Hurry!" he told the girls.

He deflected a few arrows before the archers got scared enough to start running. Crane flew after them, intent on stopping them before they got to their employer.

Vixey got Tigress only a few feet farther when Monkey startled her. Tigress saw that Po and Jin were just behind them.

"We got out of there when they were getting confused," Po said, out of breath.

"They're coming!" Mantis said, appearing from out of nowhere.

Just then, Tigress stepped in just the wrong spot and slipped off the overhang, Vixey tumbling after her. The fox leapt up and hit two guards with darts before helping Tigress up and running down the other hall. She let Tigress go upon hearing other footsteps and attacked oncoming guards.

"Run, Tigress!" she shouted.

Tigress, worn out from everything, stumbled and almost fell. Then Jin grabbed her and nearly carried her away, escaping more guards that Po and Monkey attended to.

Tigress lost track of where they'd gone off to. When she and Jin found themselves in front of a staircase, they were slightly relieved. Only slightly because there was another whole floor of cells to find their way through before they were free.

Then dozens of figures seemed to materialize out of thin air. They approached the two tigers threateningly. Jin held his staff, ready to strike. But then he saw that these figures weren't the regular guards. They were all white tigers, dressed in dark clothing, all similar as if they were uniforms of a secret society.

Then the white tigers stopped approaching. They all started making a certain series of hand signals, over and over again. They'd started the series over a third time when Jin realized what was going on. It was the fourth time when Tigress saw that he was making the same hand signals.

"What are you doing?" she demanded.

"Don't worry about it, Tigress," Jin told her. "We're all safe now."

Tigress looked at him dubiously as he put his staff into the clip on his back. Then he struck out at her. Tigress was about to counter, but Jin quickly performed a nerve-strike, rendering her unconscious.

He caught her before she hit the floor and handed her to the other tigers.

"Take her to safety," he said. "I'll get the others."

He started to run to find the other Masters and met up with them before a minute was over.

"Guys!" he started. "We found the way out!"

"Let's go!" Monkey said.

They all followed Jin to the stairs, where they once again were cornered by the white tigers.

"Who are these guys?!" Vixey cried.

Then the white tigers rushed forward. Every Master was unconscious within seconds.

* * *

Tigress felt like she was drifting out of a dark mist. She felt like her eyes were glued shut and she couldn't move at all. Then she felt like something was stabbing into her injured arm. She forced her eyes open.

She was in a dimly lit room. Three white tigers looked down at her, making her realize she was on a bed in the center of the room. She tried to move and realized she was pinned down by two of the tigers.

"What do you want with me?" she furiously demanded.

The other tigers said nothing. The third tiger proceeded to put another two acupuncture needles in her injured arm, causing her to wince and try to get free.

"She is ready for you," the third tiger said to someone out of Tigress's sight.

Tigress was ready to fight to the death to escape. But then the fourth figure came into her sight. She was relieved.

"Dianli!" she cried.

The leopard gave her a warm smile and then looked at the injured arm. She started to act as if she was going to move the needles without touching them, and Tigress knew what she was about to do. She prepared herself.

Suddenly, Dianli's eyes grew blank. Her hands still moved, but the needles started moving on their own. Tigress began to feel a piercing, burning feeling in her arm and closed her eyes, focusing on her breathing.

She gasped and her eyes shot open. It felt like the bone in her arm was contorting, causing severe pain. This felt like it lasted hours, when it really only lasted a few seconds. When the pain stopped, she was gasping for breath. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the needles come out of her arm and clatter to the floor.

Dianli returned to normal. She pointed to Tigress's arm.

"Bruised," she simply said.

She bowed to her and walked away.

The two other tigers let her go and the third walked up to her.

"Rest now," the third said. "The pain will subside."

Tigress nodded and closed her eyes.

* * *

"What the heck where you thinking?!" Vixey nearly shrieked. "These guys could have killed us!"

The other seven Masters sat in a large room with many beds as several white tigers tended to their injuries.

"But they weren't going to," Jin told her.

"And how'd you know that?" Crane asked, peeved.

"The White Shadow Militia is well known to certain towns in Ju Long," Jin said. "Every youth in Miao Zhen grows up learning their ways and how to recognize them. They're dedicated to freeing those wrongly imprisoned, like slaves for example. But I don't know why they're so far from Ju Long."

"Your friend brought this division here," one of the healers said. "The silent one."

Everyone perked up.

"Dianli?!" Po cried.

"Yes," the healer said, "but she has gone now. She only stayed to heal your friend's most serious injury."

"Wait, what?" Mantis started. "She can fix broken bones? That's impossible!"

"So is moving vines with your mind," Viper added, silencing Mantis.

"Healing bones is extremely painful," the healer continued. "Your friend will be resting for some time before she joins you."

The Masters looked at each other.

"As long as she rests," Vixey said.

* * *

It was a couple of hours before they finally saw Tigress. She entered the room with her arm in a sling and gave Jin a glare when she saw him. He was talking to Vixey while holding his staff.

"You doing all right, Tigress?" he asked.

Tigress didn't answer him. However, she kicked the bottom of the staff away from him so the top would hit his face. She walked away and sat on one of the spare beds as he rubbed his nose.

* * *

"Where to now?" Po asked.

Vixey pulled a map out of her bag and set it on one of the beds.

"We're here now," she said, pointing. "I think we're here, at least."

A healer looked at the map and moved Vixey's finger to a spot farther east.

"Thanks," the fox said flatly as the tiger walked off.

The Masters studied the map and thought for a few seconds.

"Tigress, any ideas?" Monkey asked. "Tigress?"

They turned to see her asleep on the bed she'd been sitting on.

"She was awake a second ago," Crane said.

"Well, if she needs to sleep..." Vixey started.

Then Tigress jumped and woke up. She sat up quickly as if she hadn't planned to sleep just yet.

"Are you all right, Tigress?" Po asked. "You can just keep sleeping if you want."

"I'm fine," Tigress said quickly. "North of here is a small town with an abandoned factory. We can get more supplies and form a strategy there."

The others looked at the map.

"I just sort of feel like we're not getting anything done," Mantis said.

"Which is why we need a strategy," Tigress said. "We can't just keep ducking in and out of towns and away from Ruili. We're going to have to face her."

"What about protecting the Emperor?" Viper asked. "Ruili might go after him if she can't get us."

"His army will protect him," Tigress told her. "They'll more likely kill us anyway because of the rumors flying around."

Everyone fell silent.

"Then... does that mean we're going to free the Valley?" Po asked.

"It seems to be the only thing we can do right now," Tigress said.

Everyone was silent again.

"That'll probably put us face-to-face with Ruili," Jin said.

"So be it," Tigress told him. "We can't keep running forever. It'll be best to fight her and her armies on familiar ground, despite our current disadvantages."

The others thought, and then agreed.

As Vixey was putting the map away, one of the white tigers approached.

"We have received a report that Ruili is coming this way," he said. "We would prefer that you stayed longer to recover, but this will be too close of an escape as is."

"What will you do after we leave?" Viper asked. "They'll know we've been here."

The white tiger nodded.

"We will ransack this building to show that you made a difficult escape," he said. "We wish you well and a good journey."

He and those behind him bowed to the Masters, who bowed back.

"Now, leave us to our work and be on your way."


	10. Bringing Truth to Light

_Chapter Ten: Bringing Truth to Light_

It was hours before the Masters found the factory. As Tigress had described, it was old and falling apart, but still had goods that weren't too old for use. The Masters climbed to a higher platform and stopped to rest. They were all tired, but not so much as Tigress was. All along the trek, everyone kept an eye on her, making sure she wasn't having too much trouble.

Everyone was silent, trying to work up the courage to say something to her. Then Vixey approached her. She was about to say something when Tigress spoke up.

"I don't know how much more of this I can take," she admitted.

Vixey froze.

"I know honesty is appreciated at a time like this," Tigress continued. "It's about time I was honest with myself as well. I appreciate how you've all been ready to step in at a moment's notice."

Everyone gave her kind smiles.

"We appreciate you, too, Tigress," Vixey said. "Why don't I have a look at that arm while the others look around?"

The others immediately stood up and split off. They checked box after box, separating spoiled goods from items that could still be used. More often, they found garbage, due to the time since the factory was in use.

"Find anything, guys?" Viper asked, climbing to a higher level.

"Remember that rancid medicine healers used to use while we were kids?" Crane asked.

"Ew," Viper said. "What about it?"

"I found a few cases of it," Crane continued, "but I can't tell if it's any good or not. I'm just not going to touch it."

"Good idea," Monkey said.

"Found some soap," Po called from below. "Can soap go bad?"

There was the sound of him slipping and falling.

"I don't think so, Po," Mantis said nearby. "Unless you keep stepping on it."

"Over here!" came Jin's voice.

The rest of the searching Masters went to him.

"Most of these dehydrated fruits and herbs are still good," he said, pushing a box toward his friends. "Stuff your pockets in case we don't stay here long."

They filled their bags and continued searching the factory. Vixey looked down when Jin had shouted and turned back to Tigress. She'd nodded off. Vixey was about to leave her alone when she noticed signs that she was beginning to have a nightmare.

_Heavy breathing. Tigress could only hear this as she ran through a dark forest. The trees seemed taller than she thought they'd be. And was her breathing really that deep?_

_She looked to the left as she continued to run. Was there something there? There was a sound to the right, so she looked there. She still couldn't see anything._

Tigress was breathing harder and she looked troubled. Vixey debated on whether or not to wake her. Was it really worth it to let her sleep if she was having a nightmare?

_Now she saw it. Large shapes ran through the forest, looking like they were about to cut her off and engage in combat. One of the figures jumped out at her. A golden cat. But she threw it away as if it were nothing and kept running._

_Then the pale cat suddenly appeared and threw her back. Tigress leapt up and charged, ducking and dodging around the cat's furious attacks. She was knocked off as she was about to punch at her head, so she just turned and kept running._

"Tigress! Tigress!"

Tigress's eyes bolted open. She saw her friend's worried face.

"Are you okay?" Vixey asked. "You looked like you were having a nightmare."

Tigress rubbed her eyes.

"I've been having that dream a lot lately," she said. "It's the same thing, but it's slightly different each time."

"Might have something to do with fatigue," Vixey suggested.

Tigress thought about it and nodded. That must be it.

They both jumped a little as the others came scrambling up as quickly and quietly as possible.

"They found us!" Mantis whispered.

Tigress snuck to the edge of the platform and carefully looked over. The golden cats were snaking through the factory, turning over boxes and searching every possible hiding place.

"We need to get out," Tigress ordered. "Mantis, check the windows and see if we're being surrounded. Everyone else, set up distractions if they get too close."

"Okay, but I'm staying right by your side," Vixey said.

Tigress was about to say something when the fox cut her off.

"There's no way I'm going to let them catch you again, Tigress," she said. "Either I come with you or you stay right here."

Tigress hesitated and looked at everyone else. They all looked ready to tie her to the nearby post if she resisted.

"Fine then," she said. "Let's get to it."

Tigress and Vixey kept watch while the others split off. The golden cats were beginning to climb to higher levels. Everyone was ready to act.

Then one of the cats launched herself at a support beam directly below Tigress and Vixey, shattering it. The girls started to fall, but Vixey caught a firm wood plank and Tigress just in time. Then another support beam broke and they started to fall toward the mass of golden cats.

Crane appeared from nowhere and snatched them away just in time. The cats were about to pounce, but one of them was hit in the face by a medicine bottle and the whole group started to retch when it shattered on the ground. They fled from the stench of the medicine and suddenly the factory was full of chaos while they attacked the randomly placed Masters.

When one was attacked, another threw a random projectile as their friend got away. Crane landed on an upper level with Tigress and Vixey and they had a clear view of the scene. They could see that the other cats were getting frustrated as their targets kept darting in and out of their vision. Then one of them snapped. She fled the building and returned with a torch. She threw it onto a shattered medicine bottle and it immediately lit. Rancid smoke filled the air as most of the opposing cats fled the building.

"Get us down!" Vixey cried. "Smoke rises!"

"Hang on!" Crane shouted as he took them and swooped down.

Then Vixey shrieked as something hit her and she let go.

"Vixey!" Tigress shouted.

Vixey had disappeared into the smoke. Tigress and Crane could hear fighting all around them.

"I can't see!" Crane shouted.

Then he and Tigress tumbled into a stack of boxes, becoming separated. Tigress stood up, viewing the burning carnage around her. She started running to where Crane had disappeared off to. She made it a few feet before getting hit from behind and tumbled to the ground. As she slowly picked herself up, she saw one of the golden cats. This one looked like the one more often seen by the pale cat's side.

Tigress made ready to fight and the golden cat charged. Tigress's attacks were slower than usual and her opponent easily dodged and struck. Tigress was sent flying into nearby boxes, shattering them and spilling their contents. She was clearly exhausted as she tried to pick herself up. As the other cat approached, Tigress suddenly threw a bar of soap, striking her squarely in the face and stunning her for a second. Then the gold cat grew angrier. She was about to strike when someone tackled her, sending her sprawling.

"Get out of here!" Vixey shouted before turning to her opponent.

As much as Tigress wanted to stay and help, she knew she was easily outmatched by an even outnumbered opponent. She disappeared into the smoke.

Vixey stood in a fighting stance and watched the cat climb to her feet.

"Little fox," the cat growled, "if I could beat down your friend, what makes you think I can't snap you in half?"

Vixey looked determined. The cat charged. The fox seemed to disappear and reappear behind her, landing a flurry of blows before jumping back to evade another hit.

"Stand still!" the cat hissed, spinning around to face her opponent.

"I won't!" Vixey shouted.

She jumped, flipped, and landed a kick to the top of the cat's head, sending her face to the floor and knocking her out cold.

Vixey was ready to continue fighting when she realized the cat wasn't rising again. She started to flee, but then turned back to the cat. She thought for a second and then took the cat and lifted her onto her shoulder.

"H-how do you g-guys do this?" she struggled to say to her faraway friends as she started escaping slowly.

Outside, everyone was waiting for her. The entire factory was on fire and the smoke rose higher than they could see. There weren't any golden cats nearby, and they guessed that they thought the Masters were stuck in the factory, never to get out alive.

"There!" Po shouted.

Everyone looked at where he was pointing and saw a huge figure. They all got nervous, but then the smoke cleared around it and revealed Vixey and her prisoner.

She dropped the cat to the ground and started coughing heavily.

"Why'd you bring her?" Mantis started. "If she wakes, she'll kill us all!"

Breathing heavily, Vixey tried to answer, but started coughing again.

"She has answers," Tigress said for her. "Tie her up and let's get out of here."

Vixey nodded and started walking. Then something inside the factory collapsed, a great deal of smoke and fire bursting out of all exits, sending her running like a scared pup.

* * *

_The forest looked darker still. Clouds overhead obscured the moon, making the darkness and silence all the more eerie._

_Tigress was still breathing heavily and her legs begged for a rest. No resting. Could still be followed._

_Every little sound made her heart leap, even if she made that sound herself. She saw a mountain in the distance and made a mental note to stop and hide there._

"Tigress! Wake up!"

Tigress jumped and saw Vixey's worried face.

"Was it that dream again?" the fox asked.

Tigress started to get up, ignoring Vixey's question.

"Is she awake?" she asked.

"Almost," Vixey answered. "But are you feeling all right after that fire? Crane and Viper don't seem to be handling well, but I've been having them breathe in an incense. If you need it, too..."

"I'm fine," Tigress said. "Let's have a look at that prisoner."

When they'd gotten a safe distance from the factory, the Masters had set up camp and prepared to interrogate the golden cat. They tied her up, and then tied her to a tree, in case they needed to cut her loose and travel with her upon getting found out. So far, the only sounds were their coughing from the aftermath of the fire.

Tigress approached the still-unconscious cat. Nothing happened for a few seconds.

"She may not wake for a while, Tigress," Vixey said as everyone watched. "It could take hours -!"

Tigress backhanded the cat, causing her to stir.

"Or you could do that," Vixey added.

The cat pried open her eyes and looked at her captors. Immediately, she started growling at them.

"You know why we decided to spare your life," Tigress started. "We want answers."

"You aren't getting any!" the cat snapped.

Tigress was unshaken.

"You aren't in the position to argue," she said. "If you tell us what we want to know, we may even let you go. But if you don't..."

"You're going to kill me anyway!" the cat told her. "I'm never going to tell you anything! My sisters will come rescue me!"

"Really?" Monkey started. "I bet they think you died in that fire with all of us."

"How will anyone save you if they think you're dead?" Jin asked.

The golden cat started to look fearful, but she tried to keep her wit.

"I still won't talk!" she shouted. "You'll have to kill me!"

"Hm..." Vixey started. "I think death is the easy way out. Viper's venom is nice, slow, and rather painful, don't you agree?"

In response to this, Viper lifted her head and bared her fangs. They looked like she sharpened them recently and they glistened brightly in the light of the fire.

The golden cat jumped so hard she nearly banged her head on the tree.

"No! No!" she screamed. "Don't bite me!"

"Then tell us," Tigress demanded, "why is Ruili attacking us? What does she want with us?"

The golden cat was close to tears and she was frozen with fear. Viper rolled her eyes and rose to get closer to the prisoner.

"Stop! No!" the cat shrieked. "D-don't!"

She started sobbing. Tigress waited for her to control herself.

"Sh-she wants r-revenge," the cat cried.

"Figures," Po murmured.

"Wh-when she was l-little," the cat started, "h-her people were c-constantly treated h-horribly by Imperial s-soldiers. Th-they were attacked, b-beaten... sometimes k-killed. F-for no apparent r-reason."

She hiccupped.

"She wants to t-take down everyone w-with high authority," she continued. "G-give the people the ch-chance to fight back."

She fell silent. The Masters all thought for a little bit.

"Then why are you here?" Vixey asked. "Where did you come from?"

The cat seemed to calm down a little.

"Ruili needed an army," she continued. "She heard of us when she and other refugees escaped to the northern parts of Africa. We're lions, and we're stronger than warriors you'd usually find here, in China."

"And you agreed to her plan?" Po asked.

"N-no," the lioness answered, becoming upset again. "We all thought it was an insane idea. All our villages started shunning her because she was being irrational. B-but th-then..."

She started to shake.

"I n-never thought it would h-happen to us," she started. "W-we saw her c-coming w-with these h-huge bears. W-we didn't th-think she'd just attack us. B-but wh-when she d-did... We w-were too s-slow to st-stop her. Sh-she captured entire v-villages and... and -!"

"And what?" Tigress asked.

The lioness burst into tears.

"She gathered everyone into the village squares!" she cried. "She t-took all our h-husbands and k-killed them! R-right in front of us! In f-front of us and our ch-children!"

The Masters were horrified as the lioness broke down again.

"Sh-she s-said we w-were g-going to h-help her," the lioness continued, "or sh-she'd s-slaughter our ch-children. M-my son is all I have! I c-can't let h-him die!"

The Masters were silent as the lioness sobbed. Vixey whispered something to Tigress and walked forward.

"What if we were to help you, Nyota?" the fox asked.

The lioness looked up at her.

"How do you know my name?" she asked. "And you can't help me! Not without turning yourselves in! And she won't stop until even the Emperor is on his knees!"

"I know your name because I heard it a few times while we were on the run," Vixey answered. "We know a way to help you without turning ourselves in, and what's this about the Emperor?!"

Nyota shuddered.

"She wants to erase all loose ties before going after him," she said.

"So she won't strike until we're dead," Tigress answered for her.

Nyota nodded.

"You could jump in during the attack on the Imperial Palace and thwart her," she said. "She won't attack until all threats are deposed and can't fight her."

"What about Gongmen?" Crane asked.

"That's her next target," Nyota said. "She won't attack it either until you're all taken care of. It has a huge army and -!"

"And a frightening and powerful peahen at its head," Tigress told her.

Nyota nodded again.

"She wants to be sure no one can interfere with either battle," she continued. "So she'll do what she'd done to you to Gongmen City."

"She'd have to plan carefully, then," Jin said. "Any wrong move and the Emperor will send his armies after her."

"She's been planning for years," Nyota said. "She expected to get rid of you guys swiftly."

"So much for that part of the plan," Mantis added.

Nyota sniffed.

"I just want to go home to my son without Ruili's burden," she said.

"You can do that," Tigress told her, "_if_ you give us a few more answers."

"Like what?" Nyota demanded.

"Ruili's weaknesses," Vixey started. "Maybe even the weaknesses of that army she lifted from you guys in Africa."

Nyota looked down. Then she got angry.

"I _hate_ that horrible woman Ruili put over us," she fumed. "Her name is Guai Hu. Or at least it was given to her when she met Ruili."

She noticed the Masters exchanged odd glances.

"What?" she asked.

"'Guai Hu' means 'strange tiger'," Vixey said. "I bet not even Ruili knows what she is."

"She's a cougar," Nyota said. "I think she came here or to Africa from the Americas. She's strong and can stand to take a ton of blows. But if you get her alone, without any of my sisters, she could fall fast."

"About your 'sisters'," Monkey started. "What about them?"

"We were all taught a little Kung Fu when we became Ruili's army," Nyota answered. "But we're all clumsy with it, and with traditional weapons. We're resilient and strike hard and fast, but we have trouble hitting people behind us."

"With advanced Kung Fu, you'd have no problem with that," Tigress said. "Now what about Ruili?"

"She's tiny and most vulnerable on her own," Nyota told her. "She can't use large weapons, but can be deadly with the small ones, like daggers. I don't think she's had any real combat in ages. She left all the fighting to the bears."

She paused.

"Don't you need to know about the bears?" she asked.

"We've fought them before," Crane said. "And it's one bear now."

Nyota's eyes widened.

"Now, one last thing," Tigress started. "Where is Master Shifu?"

"I don't know," Nyota said. "My group has been chasing you guys ever since you evaded us the first time. I haven't heard anything about him, or the attack on the Valley."

Tigress turned away from her. The Masters started whispering to each other, out of Nyota's earshot. The lioness got antsy.

"What are you doing?" she asked. "You said you had a plan to help me, now what is it?"

The Masters all turned to her.

"You have given us very valuable information," Vixey said, "but we can't let you go back to Ruili."

Nyota looked at each of their faces.

"Y-you aren't going to kill me!" she begged. "You can't orphan my son! Please d-!"

Mantis suddenly appeared and applied a nerve-strike, rendering her unconscious.

"Are we really going to take her there?" Vixey asked.

"Yes," Tigress said. "Her allies will think she never made it out of the factory. Crane, there's a port town a few miles away. Put her on the next boat and come back here. If we're not here, continue north."

She looked northward and saw the mountain she'd seen in her vision, but it was closer this time.

"The next rest stop will be up there," she ordered as Nyota was untied and Crane took off with her. "Reserve your strength for the hike."


	11. Staff in Hand

**Whoops! I almost forgot to publish today! I would have stuck with the one chapter every other day until I've caught up, but I don't publish Sundays.**

**Short, yet exciting chapter! Please enjoy!**

* * *

_Chapter Eleven: Staff in Hand_

The cave was silent. It was early morning - too early for the sun to shine. All of the Masters were asleep, but they were ready to wake at a moment's notice.

That moment came. Vixey woke as soon as she heard footsteps and didn't care how far away they were. She woke the others with the sound of her swishing tail. The Masters quickly bolted to the inside of the outer rock wall, ready to attack if needed.

All seemed silent, but Vixey got anxious as the footsteps grew louder to her.

"How many?" Tigress asked.

Vixey listened closer. She looked confused at the answer that came to her.

"One," she told the others. "I'd have heard others breathing."

She focused more on her task.

"The person's small. Uses a cane of some sort."

The others started looking at each other eagerly. Vixey's spirits made her seem to glow as if the sun shined on her.

"And he's limping on his right leg."

"SHIFU!" they all shouted with glee.

The old red panda limped into view. He was immediately surrounded by his students.

"Master!" Viper cried, "We thought you were captured!"

The students let Shifu walk to a small boulder to sit down.

"Yes," he said, exhausted, "I almost was."

"Well, what happened?" Po asked.

Shifu began to tell his story:

"I knew something was wrong when I sensed your presence, Tigress. That you had all fallen into some kind of misfortune. I believe you told everyone about what you saw. Yes, I was cornered, and yes, I was almost out of energy. I deflected everything they threw at me and escaped through the wall. I escaped to the bamboo forest and my exhaustion led me to believe I had evaded them. I didn't. The moment I let my guard down, I was surrounded. By all means, I should be tied up in some dark dungeon somewhere, but Dianli came to my rescue."

Crane spoke up.

"Dianli saved us, too!" he proclaimed. "If she didn't, we'd all be trapped in that dungeon we rescued Tigress from."

Shifu continued:

"Dianli helped me recover my strength and we parted ways. I wanted to warn everyone's families. Every time I came to one of your homes, I found that the inhabitants had already fled. But I finally found someone who hadn't been warned yet."

_Knock knock knock._

"_I'm coming," came a voice. "Just a second."_

_The door opened and Tian stood there. She saw a hunched over figure with a straw hat hiding his eyes, similar to her father._

"_What on earth?" she cried. "Father, where have you been?! I've looked everywhere for you! Come inside!"_

_The older red panda shuffled into the house and Tian closed the door._

"_Is it really that bad, Shifu?" she asked, her voice lowered. "I've heard rumors."_

"_Chances are that those rumors are true," Shifu told her, removing his hat. "The Palace has fallen. I have reason to believe that my students are evading harm as we speak."_

_Tian sat down near the table. She looked very troubled._

"_How could this have happened?" she asked. "I should have been able to foresee this months ago. If I wasn't so busy chasing Father..."_

"_It isn't your fault," Shifu told his sister. "If I had even the slightest warning that something this bad would have happened, I would have sent you a letter. Or Ting. Or even Zhanshi. We were all caught by surprise. But we will win the Palace back. I have faith in my students."_

_Tian thought for a moment._

"_You didn't just come to tell me this," she said. "I'm in danger, too, aren't I?"_

"_Yes," Shifu told her. "If Father has been evading you all this time, he can escape Ruili's forces. Find a safe place. I'm going to find them."_

"_How will you know where to find them?" Tian asked. "Vixey is quite capable of hiding tracks, if your students aren't as well."_

"_I'm their Master," Shifu responded simply. "I've taught them everything they know. I will find them."_

_He donned the straw hat again and walked toward the door._

"_I'll leave in an hour, if not sooner," Tian told him. "Both of us leaving at the same time will cause suspicion."_

"_Do what you must," Shifu said. "Good luck, sister, and may we meet again."_

"Tian escaped capture and is also on the run," Shifu continued. "I understand that our families are safe and no one can be used as leverage against us."

"But what about Dad?!" Po cried.

"Dianli would have warned him long before I could get there," Shifu assured him. "If he was captured, she would have freed him."

Po relaxed a little.

"I didn't make things too hard for you, did I Master?" Vixey asked.

"I would have been disappointed if you hadn't," Shifu said. "I chased you all over China and had to run all the way here. I was found by a group of those lionesses and their pale leader, but of course, I escaped before long."

Tigress looked like she realized something.

"Those weren't dreams," she started, gaining everyone's attention. "I had visions of where you were, Master. I saw you running through the forest and defending against our enemies as if I were looking through your eyes."

"It appears your Sight is growing," Shifu told her. "It may become useful later."

"What do we do now, Master?" Viper asked.

"We go back to the Valley of Peace," Shifu responded. "We have unfinished business there. But we cannot do this alone. We must somehow gather an army to fight Ruili."

"Um... I'd like to stay and chat," Vixey interrupted, "but we have incoming."

Shifu stood up.

"How many?" he asked.

"A lot," Vixey responded. "I can't tell right now."

"How are we getting down?" Crane asked. "If we go out now, they'll see us!"

"We won't go down," Shifu said, pointing with his staff. "We'll go up. We can lose them in the mountains."

The Masters all picked up their gear and fled deeper into the cave.


	12. Cold as Ice

**Here's a new chapter, and just for some certain shippers, a nice little surprise. Enjoy!**

* * *

_Chapter Twelve: Cold as Ice_

The mountains were cold and lonely, an eerie wind whistling off the peaks. All was white except for the occasional rock surface that wasn't covered by snow. There were plenty of dead trees on the way up, the ones nearest to the top looking like ghostly figures. Near the peak of the mountain, there were mounds of collected snow from small avalanches of snow when there was too little surface atop the jagged rock.

The cave the Masters found was large and well hidden. They had to clear away a lot of snow before they could enter; although, it wasn't a large task for Crane. The inside of the cave was basically two large rooms, separated by what seemed like a gigantic doorway. Large boulders could be moved around for some to sit on, and some were flat enough to serve as beds for the smaller Masters.

The wind outside was blowing hard and the snow seemed to shoot down as if they were arrows from a bow. The Masters had been able to collect wood from the trees just minutes before the storm settled in. As the light was fading, they sat around the fire and simply stared at the fire.

Vixey's boredom broke the silence.

"So," she asked, "what do you guys want to do when we finally get back to the Jade Palace?"

Jin turned thoughtful.

"I've got something special planned," he told them all. "I'm going to propose to Xinli."

"How sweet of you!" Viper said, raising her head. "I'm sure she'd be elated!"

"I've been thinking about it over the past several months," Jin continued. "When everything's settled down, I'm going to ask for time off to head home, buy a ring, and make my move. If that's all right, Master?"

A kind smile crawled onto Shifu's face.

"It shouldn't be any problem," he said. "Maybe then Xinli can stop by more often."

"What about you, Master?" Monkey asked, "Please don't tell us you'll be studying more scrolls."

"No," Shifu answered. "I've decided I'll visit Tian's grandchildren. One of them will be married soon, and I've never met them."

Vixey couldn't help herself.

"Wow," she muttered, "you guys _are_ getting old."

Most of the Masters snickered as she spoke. She thought for a moment.

"I think I'll go back to my hometown and see Mom," she said. "I haven't visited just to visit in ages. That'd be a delightful change. What about the rest of you?"

"I don't really have anything big going for me right now," Mantis said.

"I think I might head home for a few more days, too," Viper said.

Amidst all the talk, Po noticed Tigress wasn't saying anything.

"If you don't mind," Shifu started suddenly, "I need to go meditate."

Everyone broke from the current conversation to say goodbye and returned immediately to the topic. Po watched Shifu walk off and disappear into the other side of the cave and felt the urge to follow him. He waited for a few more seconds before he rose.

"Where are you going, Po?" Jin asked. "I thought Shifu wanted to be alone."

Po was about to answer when Monkey did it for him.

"He occasionally makes an exception for Po," he said. "Maybe it's important."

The conversation returned to normal as Po continued on his way. He found Shifu sitting at the other entrance of the cave as if he was watching the snowfall. Po sat right next to him and didn't say anything.

After a moment of silence, Shifu sighed unhappily.

"I'm worried about her, Po," he started. "I sensed her injuries when I sensed she could see me. I am pleased that she lasted so long before taking serious harm. You understand, don't you?"

"I sure do, Master," Po told him. "We're all worried about Tigress. Lately, we've been trying to keep her out of the fight or she'll just get hurt badly again."

Shifu looked down.

"No one is immune to weakness," he said. "Not even the best of us. Tigress understands this, but sometimes she acts like she doesn't want to understand. I know she wants to help people. But if her wounds are large enough to keep her from action, she may cause more harm than good."

Po remained silent.

"Promise me something, Po," Shifu continued. "No matter how she reacts in the future, whether I'm there or not, make sure she doesn't push herself farther than she should. There are things you can do that she can't. Be ready to help her in her mistakes before she makes them."

"I'll try, Master," Po said.

They were silent for a while.

"I think I'll head back," Po said. "I'll probably get dinner going."

Shifu nodded. Po returned to the group and found that the others were engaging in conversation in smaller groups. Only Tigress remained near the fire.

Po sat down nearby.

"You doing all right, Tigress?" he asked.

Tigress didn't answer him for a moment.

"When everyone was talking about what they'd do after the fighting was over," she started, "I... I never answered because I don't know what I'd do. It sounds like everyone has plans to move on with their lives while doing Kung Fu. I have no family outside the Palace. All I've ever had plans for was to learn Kung Fu and defend the Valley."

Po shrugged.

"Looks like you've already achieved that," he said. "All you need now are new plans."

"Like what?"

Po appeared to be flustered for a moment.

"I don't know," he started. "Maybe you could look around and see if you really don't have, like, long-lost family members or something."

Tigress gave him a look.

"My parents were slaves," she told him bluntly.

"But that doesn't mean they didn't have siblings," Po said. "What I'm trying to say is... well, look at me! I thought I didn't have any family either, and I turned out to have a whole village behind my back! What's that got to say for you?"

Tigress looked back at the fire and thought.

"That was just one suggestion," Po continued. "What about what Jin's doing? He's gonna go off and get married! There isn't any reason why you can't get married in the future! Aside from those two things, there's plenty of other stuff you could do. I didn't really think about what I could do in the future, either. Maybe, you and I could, I don't know, go out to eat or something."

He froze, realizing what he'd just said. Then he saw a small smile appear on Tigress's face.

"That would be nice," she said.

Po just looked at her with complete shock. She just looked at him kindly before looking back at the fire.

"Just don't forget it, though, okay?" Tigress asked. "You tend to be a complete idiot when it comes to things like this."

Po was on the verge of blushing through his fur. Was she really saying this?

The two returned to a normal conversation for the rest of the evening.

* * *

It felt like only minutes before someone realized the sun had long since set. The sky was pitch black behind the still rapidly falling snow. Blankets were unrolled and the Masters were beginning to settle down to sleep.

"I'll take first watch," Po said.

"I will, too," Viper added. "It'll be easier if we each only watch one entrance."

"Po," Crane said suddenly, "wake me in a few hours. I'll get the next shift."

Po nodded and went to the entrance where he'd spoken with Shifu. He sat against the wall and stared out at the snow for any sign of something living. Whether it was minutes or hours, he couldn't really tell how long he sat there, looking at nothing. It was only when he started to nod off for a third time, almost falling asleep where he sat this time, that he decided to go wake Crane. He was worried it hadn't been very long until he saw that Monkey had taken Viper's watch and the snake was sound asleep, coiled up between Tigress and Vixey.

When Crane left for his watch, Po lay on the bare, cold, rocky ground under his blanket and, for some reason, couldn't get to sleep. After some time, he noticed Tigress was getting up. He sat up, too, and was about to speak to her. But then he saw that she was alerted to something and was feeling the ground.

Then he felt it. It was a low rumble that lasted only a second or two.

"What's that?" he asked quietly.

Tigress looked at the entrance Monkey was guarding. The rest of the Masters were awake now, and everyone raced to that entrance. The snow had let up some, but not completely. It was just enough to see a blast from the past - literally.

Several masses, dark against the snow, were firing Shen's cannons.


	13. Breathes Fire and Spits Metal

_Chapter Thirteen: Breathes Fire and Spits Metal_

"What the heck are those?!" Vixey shrieked.

A cannonball hit a few feet away, making them fight to stay standing.

"Everyone! Move! Now!" Shifu shouted.

They all dove out of the way as a cannonball soared directly overhead and landed inside the cave, starting its collapse. The Masters covered their heads as shards of rock and ice showered over them.

Vixey sat up after the dust settled and looked shaken.

"What about our supplies...?" she started faintly.

Jin held up the bags and blankets he'd grabbed as he had fled the cave. He looked exhausted.

Everyone stood up and began running.

"How do they have Shen's cannons?" Po shouted. "I thought they were all destroyed during the final battle?"

"These may have been rejects!" Tigress told him. "I don't think these ones shoot as far!"

Everyone slid to a stop and fell as a cannonball landed feet in front of them.

"Get farther down the mountain!" Shifu ordered. "Po! With me!"

He and Po stood, ready to deflect the cannonballs. Then they noticed Tigress was with them.

"Wha-? Tigress?" Po started.

"She's been practicing, too," Shifu told him. "Be ready!"

* * *

Down by the cannons, Ruili could see what was happening. She saw the three figures standing to fight and the rest of them disappeared behind them. She pointed at one of the figures.

"Aim at her," she said.

* * *

"Here it comes!" Po shouted.

Tigress saw that the cannonball was coming at her. She prepared herself with the Inner Peace technique and held her paw out to catch the projectile.

She managed to catch it, but it shot a severe pain from the pad of her paw up to her shoulder. The force of it directed her to throw it upward and it landed a distance behind her.

She fell to one knee, grasping her now burned paw in pain and shock.

"I felt that!" she hissed.

"Help the others!" Shifu told her, rushing forward to successfully deflect a cannonball, landing it on the cannon it came from.

Tigress stood up and fled, leaving the hard part to the boys.

The cannons started to fire incessantly at the two Masters, but with every projectile they caught and deflected, another cannon was blown to smithereens.

"Master!" Po started. "Look!"

They both saw a massive horde of lionesses charging toward the place they'd told the other Masters to go. Obviously, they'd caught on.

"Spare the last cannons," Shifu said.

He then deflected a cannonball and shot it toward the lionesses, which scrambled to get out of the way and broke formation to hide from the deadly projectiles.

It took only a few deflections for the cannons to stop firing at the two and turn to aim at the other Masters. Po and Shifu started to run for the others, realizing shortly that the cannons weren't firing. They were being left alone for the melee fight.

Po and Shifu sped up their flight.

* * *

Tigress had seen the lionesses scatter and started running faster to catch up with the others. Then Ruili suddenly appeared a few feet ahead of her, ready to fight her. Tigress stopped immediately and assumed a fighting stance.

"All alone are we, Tigress?" the otter asked. "I've been long awaiting this moment."

She shot forward so fast that Tigress could barely see her. Tigress aimed carefully and punched. She barely felt Ruili go over her fist, causing her heart to lurch.

Then she felt something hit Ruili and knock her away. Shifu landed between the two.

"Go!" he shouted. "Now!"

Tigress bolted, leaving the two to fight.

* * *

Vixey looked over everything she could see as she ran, thinking about what she could do to help everyone get away. She caught sight of the perfect thing: a tall, steep hill with plenty of snow on top.

"Po!" she shouted. "I need you!"

Not waiting for Po to hear her, she ran faster and jump-kicked the steepest side of the hill, making all the extra snow fall off and into a big pile below.

A distance away, Po ran past Tigress upon hearing Vixey's call and saw what she needed him for.

"Got it!" he shouted.

He failed to notice that Tigress stopped running. She turned and watched the fight between Shifu and Ruili unfold.

* * *

Ruili struck fast, however failing to strike Shifu with her blades. Shifu made a serious effort to stay out of reach and still land an occasional hit.

Then they landed a few feet away from each other.

"Shifu! Hurry!" came Vixey's shout.

Suddenly, Shifu and Ruili shot toward each other. At the very last second, Shifu jumped away, but still landed his attack. From Tigress's point of view, it looked like a nerve attack. The otter shrieked and was thrown back, sliding a distance in the snow.

Shifu hesitated for a moment before running toward his students.

Then he stumbled and fell.

"Shifu!" Tigress cried.

She ran to him, picked him up as he was trying to rise, and carried him to the others.

Everyone else except Po surrounded the oversized snow drift. Tigress slid to a spot nearby and set Shifu down. She looked up and saw Po was nearly at the top.

Then she looked down at Shifu, who had been gripping his side. He pulled his hand away, and it was covered in blood. They exchanged glances in fear.

Vixey was just beginning her disappearing dance as Po jumped off the steep hill, right over the snow drift. She saw Ruili staggering toward the group in the distance. As she finished the final two steps of the dance, she winked at the otter.

Then Po panda-bombed the snow drift and the powdery snow shot into the air. When it all settled, the Masters were nowhere to be found.

Ruili was furious.

"FIND THEM NOW!" she shrieked, and then fainted.


	14. An Old Memory

_Chapter Fourteen: An Old Memory_

"Vixey! He's bleeding!"

Everyone turned to look at Shifu, shocked at Tigress's claim. The fear was evident when they saw the blood on his hand and that he looked close to fainting. Vixey rushed immediately to him with Mantis just behind.

Tigress turned to look at the others, who were still in shock.

"We have better things to do than just wait around," she started. "Monkey, get a fire going. Po, see what you can make with the materials we have. The rest of you, scout around."

No one wasted another moment. As soon as everyone was busy, Tigress turned back to look on Shifu's progress. Confident Vixey and Mantis had the situation under control, she joined the scouting party.

* * *

"He's not as bad as he looked," Mantis said once the others had started gathering around the fire. "Looks like Ruili only nicked him."

"He was just dizzy after the jump," Vixey said. "That can happen if you're injured or even just not ready for it. If you're exhausted, it'll even knock you out."

Everyone looked at Shifu, laying only a few inches behind the fox. He was asleep under a blanket.

"I was actually worried about poisoning," Vixey continued, setting everyone on edge, "but it surely would've taken effect by now. My disappearing trick would've sped it up."

The others sighed.

"Well," Po started, "soup's on. Sorry if it tastes a little bland."

Viper helped pass bowls along and sat one next to the fire, keeping it warm for Shifu.

"Every little bit helps," Crane said, gulping the soup down.

"Tastes better than what we've had lately," Monkey added.

Everyone fell silent as they ate.

"So where to now?" Jin asked. "We can't just go straight for the Valley. It's still a long way off and Shifu needs to rest."

"We'll be pressed for strength if we're attacked at all," Tigress said. "He can't fight in this condition."

"If the wound was just on his hand or arm, he'd be able to fight just fine," Vixey added. "But it's on his side. If he moves too much, he could accidentally open the wound again. It may seem small, but he could still bleed a lot from it."

"We need a safe house," Viper said.

"But everywhere we go, they're right behind us," Monkey said. "If we even stop for a few hours, they'll be on us in no time."

"We could go to my birth village," Po suggested.

"We can't go there," Vixey responded. "We can't honestly bring all this trouble onto your dad after what happened with Shen!"

"No, not that village!" Po continued. "My _real_ birth village! It's been abandoned ever since the attack!"

Everyone looked at him with surprise.

"The original..." Vixey started, taking out her map. "Of course! It's practically fallen off the map! No doubt Ruili has no idea where it is!"

She gasped.

"It's only about a couple days away," she continued. "Just over one day if Shifu wasn't injured."

They heard a groan and all looked at Shifu. He'd woken and was trying to carefully sit up.

"Are you all right, Master?" Tigress asked as Vixey went to help.

Shifu held his side and painfully limped toward the circle of friends to sit down.

"I'll live," he said, taking the bowl of soup Po offered. "I agree that we should head for that abandoned village. Without the signs of life, it's hard to stumble upon."

The others nodded in agreement.

"Well then," Jin started, "we've wasted enough time here, so we should..."

Everyone fell silent, listening. Every Master was looking in a different direction, scanning everything around them. Then there was a sound in a nearby bush Shifu had pointed to.

"Gotcha!" Mantis shouted as he jumped out of the bush with another figure.

The small figure squeaked with surprise and slid toward the other Masters, each now on his or her feet. He hadn't seen Mantis disappear and was quite ready to have a heart attack now that all eyes were on him.

"Who are you?" Tigress demanded.

The small figure, a few inches bigger than Mantis and looking somewhat like a rodent, looked like he was going to keep his mouth shut. Then he started screaming for his life.

"I swear I didn't volunteer for this job!" he pled. "She has my wife and children! Please don't kill me!"

"You were following us?" Viper asked.

"Y-yes!" the small figure answered. "My name is Loris! It won't matter because you're about to kill me! Please don't kill me!"

He started sobbing. The Masters looked at each other, exchanging looks of confusion and worry.

"So Ruili sent you," Jin started, "and she has your family..."

"Yes, or I'd never have agreed to this!" Loris replied hurriedly. "She'd kill me if she knew I was found out! Then where'd my wife and children be?"

"Couldn't you just give her a false trail?" Monkey asked.

"I can't just make things up on the go!" Loris told him. "I'm not that imaginative! I'd have to tell her the truth!"

The Masters immediately started thinking up other possible plans they'd make, but none of them seemed to really work.

"Where would we go?" Vixey asked. "The only logical choice is Po's village."

Tigress shook her head.

"Gongmen City," she said. "We know Ruili is afraid of engaging Ting before she's dealt with us. Tell her that's where we're going."

Everyone looked at her dubiously.

"That's impractical," Vixey told her. "It's too far away and we'd never make it with our reduced pace."

"Exactly," Tigress continued. "After dealing with Nyota, we could have decided to go straight to Gongmen City for more protection from Ruili."

Then she gasped and her eyes grew wide with fear. She turned to Loris.

"You saw us take Nyota," she started. "What did you tell Ruili?"

Loris shrugged.

"I said you killed her," he said simply.

The Masters looked dumbfounded.

"You could plainly see we only knocked her out," Crane said. "Why didn't you tell her the truth?"

"Because of her son," Loris said. "She would've gone and found Nyota and killed the both of them. With my own family in the way of harm, I couldn't do that."

He could tell the Masters were impressed with him.

"Okay, so Gongmen City," he continued. "After I tell her this, she'd have everyone rushing to head you guys. She'd be almost sure she'd catch you, but if she doesn't find you and goes for Gongmen City... Then what? She could draw out that peahen and kill her just like she tried you guys."

Tigress shook her head.

"Ting is much wiser than that," she said. "With word about the Valley spreading, she would have used her Sight to see what's really going on. And I will tell her long in advance that Ruili's forces are coming."

Loris jumped back in surprise.

"How can you tell her that?" he asked. "Are you a Seer?"

"Yes, but still a beginner," she told him. "If I can't contact her directly, I can send her the impression to contact me. By the time that happens, you still wouldn't have gotten to Ruili."

Loris nodded.

Jin noticed Shifu seemed conflicted.

"Is something wrong, Master?" he asked, drawing all attention.

Shifu thought for a moment, as if he didn't know what to say, but then dismissed it.

"It... It isn't important," he said.

"So, Loris," Vixey began, "are the armies coming this way now?"

Loris looked nervous.

"Yes," he said. "They should probably get here within the hour."

"Then we'll use a nerve strike on you," Tigress told him. "When you're found, they'll know we found you and Ruili will have to look for someone else to spy on us. When you wake a few hours later, tell her about Gongmen City. Then take your family and run."

Loris nodded determinedly, but couldn't hide his fear.

"Oh, and I need to tell you," he started. "Ruili doesn't use poisoned weapons. She isn't an expert with any weapon and still has that risk of cutting herself. But the Da Brothers... If they're trying to kill someone, in war or in a one-on-one fight, they'll always use poisoned weapons."

"Thank you for telling us," Shifu told him.

"Oh, but it's one Da Brother now, isn't it?" Loris added. "I forgot about that boat explosion. Every official across China heard about it."

He stood up straight.

"Okay, I'm ready," he said, shaking a little.

After a nod from Shifu, Mantis jumped forward and struck Loris, leaving him paralyzed. Vixey was about to say something, but paused.

"I was thinking we should move him to a safer place," she started, "but that could give away the fact that we agreed on something."

Everyone started making ready to leave. Tigress kicked dirt over the fire and turned to Shifu.

"Can you walk or would you rather one of us carry you?" she asked.

Shifu walked to her, leaning heavily against his staff.

"At this point in time," he started, "we should leave as quickly as possible. If you would...?"

Tigress knelt and let him jump up onto her shoulder.

"Let's go," she told everyone.


	15. Morale Support

_Chapter Fifteen: Morale Support_

They felt like they ran for hours. When they'd gotten a few miles away from the place they'd found Loris, the Masters stopped to take a break, resting for only a few minutes. Then they'd continued on their way.

"We... we can... stop... here," Vixey said breathlessly.

Twilight was just setting in as the Masters finally stopped. The only one not exhausted from the run was Shifu, but he was still in slight agony due to constant movement.

Jin braced himself against a tree, trying to regain his breath. Then he looked up at the trunk and noticed something. There seemed to be a marking on the tree: one upside-down triangle, with two smaller triangles on top. The larger triangle had four lines coming out of it, with two in each of its lower sides.

"Vixey," he started, "isn't this your mark?"

Vixey looked up as he stepped away from the tree. She got closer to it and just looked at it. Then she seemed to have all the energy in the world.

"It... It is!" she said. "That is my mark! Yes!"

Then she ran around to the complete opposite side of the tree and stepped back several feet. She seemed to be muttering something that sounded like directions.

"Twenty-nine, thirty," she said quietly. "It should be... here!"

She started digging right at her feet, shoveling dirt away with her paws. Everyone looked at her in confusion.

"Yes!" she shrieked, making everyone jump. "Yes, yes, yes! It's all right here!"

They saw her remove a wooden board and ran to her.

"What'd you find?" Monkey asked.

"This!" Vixey shouted, producing a fistful of dirty jewelry.

The excitement faded from everyone else and they gave her reproachful looks.

"Jewelry?" Tigress started sternly. "Why are you so happy about jewelry? You don't even wear any!"

Vixey rolled her eyes.

"In my detective years," she started, "I learned a trick for while I investigate. I have hidey-holes all around China with assorted jewelry. _Because_ it's pointless to hide money. Money goes down in value all the time!"

"Your point?" Mantis asked.

"My point is," Vixey continued, "if I'm out of cash and I find these jewels, I can just sell them. After a while, these become antiques! Their value goes up while money's value goes down! I can go to town with these and come back with enough food to last us weeks."

Everyone now looked as overjoyed as she was. Vixey then pulled out a large ball of cloth.

"'Scuse me for a sec," she said.

She walked off a short distance and began shaking the ball of cloth, now seen as a female farmer's uniform, and Vixey seemed to disappear under a dust cloud. She came back hacking.

"This..." she started, still coughing a little, "is my disguise. There's always one in each of my caches."

"Excellent planning, Vixey," Shifu said. "But don't take too long. The longer we spend in any place increases the chance we'll be found."

"I understand, Master," Vixey said, putting the uniform on over her clothes. "The nearest town should be just a mile away. I'll be back before you know it."

* * *

Hours later, the Masters were still all waiting. Night had fallen some time ago. Most of them were laying on their backs, watching the stars. Everyone jumped when they heard someone stumbling through the bushes.

Vixey staggered to her friends, not appearing to notice they were ready to attack her if it wasn't her, and dropped a few bags and boxes at their feet.

"I couldn't get too much," she said, pulling off the uniform. "I'd have attracted too much attention. But I'm sure I've got enough."

The Masters stepped forward to sort through the goods. The mood lightened considerably as each stored away what they'd been given.

"Almond cookies?!" Monkey started, wide-eyed and holding the small bag in his hand.

"I got a little for the both of you," Vixey said, handing a similar bag to Po. "There was a sale on them, but I'm not getting you anymore, so don't eat them all at once."

She suddenly snatched a small box from Tigress.

"That's for something else!" she said hurriedly, stuffing it in her pocket. "By the way, in an hour or so, at midnight, something's going to happen after the gong sounds. We should all go see it."

Tigress looked dubious.

"Since when does someone sound a gong at midnight?" she asked, asking everyone's question for them.

Vixey shrugged.

"I heard it's a special case," she said simply. "Come on! I bet it'll be fun!"

The others reluctantly agreed and went with her.

* * *

Whether it was only minutes or many hours, the Masters looked like they were getting bored. Or, at least Tigress was getting bored. She looked and saw that the others looked excited for some reason. She felt she was missing something.

"What are you so happy about?" she asked Po.

Po gave the same look as if he were trying to hide the fact that he was hiding something.

"H-happy about what?" he asked.

Tigress caught the eyes of each Master, but each remained silent. Something was up. It was clear.

_BONNNNNNG... BONNNNNNG..._

Everyone looked toward the sound of the gong as it rang a few more times before falling silent.

"Okay, what was that all about?" Tigress asked as the others seemed to grow only more excited.

"Well," Vixey began, "almost three decades ago, a lovely little tiger couple was blessed with a beautiful baby girl."

Tigress looked quite surprised, looking incredulously at her friends.

"Happy birthday, Tigress," Vixey told her, handing her the small box.

Tigress looked down at the small box and opened it. There was a small candle inside and the faintest scent drifted to her.

"A Bajiao candle?" she started. "Thank you, Vixey."

Then she paused.

"Why would someone ring a gong this late at night for someone's birthday?" she asked.

"I paid the guy to do it," Vixey answered. "I always kept track of the days, but just in case, I asked around."

"But," Tigress started, "you do know I was born during the d-!"

"Psh! Details!" Vixey interrupted. "The point is it's your birthday! It's too bad, really, that we're in such a bad place right now."

Tigress smiled.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," she said. "We're all alive, relatively well, and safe for the moment."

"We didn't really know what was going on until Vixey told us," Viper said.

"At least one of us remembered what day it was," Monkey added.

Tigress looked once more at her candle before boxing it up again and putting it away.

"I'll save it for another time," she said. "For now, let's all get some rest."

The others nodded.

"I'll take the first watch tonight," Jin said.

They all withdrew a distance from the town and made ready to sleep. Tigress looked up past the leaves overhead and watched the stars.

This was a pretty good night. And soon, she was sure, this whole battle would be over.


	16. Old Village, New Surprise

_Chapter Sixteen: Old Village, New Surprise_

"C'mon!" Po shouted. "We're almost there!"

Vixey looked annoyed and turned to Crane.

"For once, he's right," she breathed.

"It should be right over this hill, right?" Tigress asked, gesturing at the slope several yards ahead.

"Should be," Vixey answered.

Tigress turned back to watch Shifu's progress. He'd gotten faster since his injury, but still seemed to be straggling and in some amount of pain. She stood and waited for him to catch up, walking with him.

Po stopped just before he could climb the hill and went back to the two.

"You doing okay, Shifu?" he asked.

"I'll be fine," Shifu huffed.

Then he looked up. Tigress saw it, too.

"Is that smoke?" she asked.

Po turned and looked, too. Visible above the trees, there seemed to be smoke from a small fire, likely within the borders of the old village.

"Um, Po?"

The three Masters caught sight of Vixey.

"This village isn't abandoned," the fox said awkwardly.

Shifu climbed to Tigress's shoulder, who ran with Po up the hill. What they saw startled them.

There were dozens of makeshift campsites, each with one to three tents surrounding a campfire. The old village seemed to be overrun by many people of many different species, all of them looking very run down.

"Where did these guys come from?" Po asked.

"They look like refugees," Jin said. "What do you think, Shifu?"

Everyone turned to look at the red panda, but they only saw Tigress. They looked around, panicked, for a moment before they all caught sight of him. He was speaking to the people in the nearest set of tents. The patriarch of the group, an old, ragged bunny, looked very relieved to be talking with Shifu, while the old Master seemed quite disturbed. The students walked to their Master to find out what's been going on.

"Thank you for explaining," Shifu told the bunny before turning to his students. "It appears that everyone has come to escape Ruili. None of these people should give us trouble."

The Masters looked around at the refugees in sorrow.

"We should see if we can give them immediate help," Viper suggested.

Shifu nodded.

"I will rest here," he said. "Distribute as much food as we can spare to these people. We can do at least that much."

His students nodded and parted ways.

* * *

"I'm sorry," Vixey said. "That's all I have. I'll see if the others have any food left."

The remaining refugees looked sorrowful and returned to their families. Vixey looked around a little bit before returning to Shifu.

But then she stopped. Her fur stood on end and she started shaking. She stared at several small figures around a fire a distance away from her. Polecats.

She stood still, fists clenched, for a while before Tigress finally found her. Tigress noticed her behavior and looked at what the fox was looking at. She, too, froze, but then she caught herself and relaxed.

"Vixey, stop," she said quietly, yet firmly. "Now isn't the time for this."

Tears started to form in Vixey's eyes and hatred was clear on her face.

"Th-they..." Vixey started. "It's... it's them...Th-they k-killed..."

"Just stop and go to Shifu," Tigress persisted. "Now."

Vixey didn't move. She seemed to not know what to do.

"Now," Tigress repeated.

Vixey stayed in place for a second before slowly moving away. She turned away from the thieves and quickened her pace. Then she ran.

Tigress looked at the Polecats. She felt a small amount of fear worm its way into her heart. Then she disregarded it and walked toward the group.

"Well, look what the cat dragged in," one of the thieves said without looking up.

Tigress expected to hear a snicker from the other thieves, but they all remained silent.

"What are you all doing here?" Tigress asked carefully. "What happened to you?"

"As if you don't know," the same Polecat grumbled.

Tigress fell silent for a short while. Then the Polecat stood up and faced her.

"When you got Huang Zu sacked," she started, "we had to find a new employer. No one could really give us any big jobs. Not until Ruili found us."

"She attacked you?" Tigress asked.

The Polecat looked sorrowfully at her feet before looking up.

"Not immediately," she continued. "She hired us, and we thought nothing of it. She and our leader arranged a meeting with the rest of us."

"Promised us a large payout," one of the other Polecats spoke up. "We were generally excited. It had been so long since we had real work."

The first Polecat was silent for a little longer, as if haunted by something.

"When Tui introduced her..." she started. "It was all so fast. We almost didn't see it."

A haunting silence spread as all the Polecats seemed to shiver. When the first Polecat couldn't find the words, her companion continued for her.

"That otter killed Tui Dong," he said gravely.

Tigress froze, the look of horror on her face. Tui Dong was dead? She could almost foresee what came next.

"We were all shocked when we saw her fall," another Polecat added. "By the time we roused ourselves, we could only run."

"Those golden cats were coming down hard on us," the second Polecat continued. "Many of our own were killed. Some were captured and may be in scattered prisons. We lucky few..."

He looked around at the handful of fellow thieves.

"Well, alive and free or not," he continued, "we don't quite consider ourselves lucky."

The first Polecat remained silent, though tears were coming to her eyes.

Tigress thought carefully about what she should say next.

"It seems we're both on the same side of this battle," she said. "We've all had a great deal of hardships."

"You know nothing," the first thief snapped.

Tigress looked at her in slight surprise as the other Polecats looked down or away.

"I am Taopa," the thief said. "I was once Tui's second. And her niece."

Tigress remained silent as Taopa angrily wiped her tears away.

"She raised me as her own," the thief fumed, "and that coward took her away from me!"

"I'm sorry for your loss," Tigress told her patiently.

Taopa scanned her face for any sign of insincerity.

"After all we put you and your kind through, you offer peace?" she hissed. "I find that _very_ hard to believe."

"Years ago, I would have responded very negatively," Tigress told her. "My training allows me to let go of old conflicts. I'm not afraid to let this one go. We may not have agreed in the past, but now, you may want to consider even a temporary alliance. For your aunt's sake."

She bowed to Taopa and left her in confused silence.

* * *

Po had long since run out of food to give to the refugees. He wandered between tents and around congregations in search of something to do to help.

Then he heard a growl that sent a chill up his spine. He turned to see what it was.

A short distance away was a large group of wolves. Shen's troops. A small number was tending to their leader's needs. The larger wolf seemed to still be wounded from Shen's blades.

Po panicked. What were they doing here?! His mind said run while his body remained motionless. Somehow, he started moving again, but not enough for him to pick up his feet and escape. He looked around aimlessly for an exit route.

Then he decided: he was the Dragon Warrior, so he'd walk right up to those wolves, demand to know why they're here, and make his triumphant exit, should they attack.

Halfway there, he asked himself what the heck he was doing.

But then he focused on his goal. He'd confidently start the conversation, showing no sign of fear. He and the other Masters beat these wolves before, so they can do so again.

Then he was reminded that he was by himself, but there was no time to turn around. He was already too close to decide to remain silent and leave.

"Wh-what're you g-guys doing here?" he said, trying to control himself.

The wolves didn't seem happy to see him. But they didn't look like they were in the mood to maul, either.

"You?" Boss Wolf started, eyes wide. "I might ask you the same thing."

He coughed heavily, prompting one of his underlings to help him.

"Nah," he said gruffly. "Nevermind. I don't want to know."

Po struggled to find something to say, but just stood there awkwardly, lips moving without sound.

"... Listen, I..." Boss Wolf continued hesitantly. "I wanna apologize for what we... what we did to you. And the others..."

Po was almost knocked off his feet upon hearing this. Was he really...?

"I always felt something was wrong," Boss Wolf said. "I just... didn't have the guts to speak up."

The looks of the members of his pack gave the impression that they agreed with him - and that he was being sincere.

Po stood frozen, no longer afraid of these wolves. He was still trying to understand everything. They were regretting working for Shen? What a... shock.

"I wish there was something we could do to make up for it all," Boss Wolf continued. "But I bet there's nothing that can fix it. Nothing at all. We'd be lucky if even you forgave us."

"I forgive you," Po said simply.

There was a drastic reaction from each wolf. Boss Wolf nearly fell off his stump while the other wolves looked at Po with such speed and force that, had they been close enough to bump heads with each other, they could've knocked each other unconscious.

"W-w-w-what?!" Boss Wolf exclaimed. "You forgive us?! Is this a trick?!"

The wolves now seemed hostile. But Po didn't show any sign of fear.

"You regret it," Po said. "You guys wish you'd never done any of those murders and you're saying you want to make it up to me? I think that's enough for forgiveness, don't you?"

Boss Wolf gawked at the big, flabby panda in front of him. His underlings seemed similarly in awe.

Seeing that the wolves were shocked speechless, Po started backing away awkwardly.

"So, uh," he began, "I guess I'll go then..."

He hesitantly turned away and hurried away as inconspicuously as he could possibly be. He was close enough to having a heart attack as well, so he wasn't quite as inconspicuous as he'd hoped.


	17. Enemies No More

_Chapter Seventeen: Enemies No More_

The Masters sat around a campfire in silence. It was dark out now. Many of the refugees were settling down to sleep.

"So what do we do now?" Monkey asked.

No one answered for a while. Worn down by the excitement of the day, they could only think.

"There's no real use staying here," Mantis said. "We're just biding our time."

Something in Mantis's words struck a chord to Tigress. She realized something just as Shifu spoke up.

"No, we're not," he said. "These people have escaped Ruili's rampage and are suffering still."

"They can help us," Tigress added.

The others lit up with realization. Jin nodded.

"If we can recruit them, we'll have our army," he said.

Vixey looked hurt and slumped over again.

"Recruit everyone?" Po asked with slight worry. "Even...?"

"Even our old enemies," Tigress finished for him.

The rest of the Five looked startled. Jin only looked confused.

"Shen's wolves and the Polecats are here, too," Tigress continued. "Po told me what happened with them. Both groups seem to be on the brink of helping us fight."

"Why should we ask the Polecats?" Vixey grumbled sourly. "They're nothing but a bunch of murdering thieves."

Tigress stood up and walked over to her.

"Stop dwelling on the past, Vixey," she told her sternly. "That won't get you anywhere."

"They killed my friends!" Vixey snapped suddenly. "They don't deserve our help!"

The other Masters were about to say something, but Tigress, without taking her eyes off the fox, held up her hand to stop them.

"I thought that was part of the risk of the job," Tigress continued. "We've faced possible death in every mission. You should be used to this. And you know they have it much worse than you."

Vixey glared at Tigress with tears in her eyes and in a childish rage. Then she buried her face into her hands.

"Now is the time to let go of old rivalries," Tigress said. "If you can let this go, you'll be much stronger than you've ever been. And they may even let go of their jobs as hired thieves."

The other Masters, with the exception of Shifu, exchanged bewildered glances with each other.

"All criminals have one thing in common," Tigress continued, "they get a thrill out of getting away with something. The Polecats may have never won an honorable battle, and now they might. They could realize they'll get the same thrill as before, only by remaining on the good side of the law."

She knelt to look Vixey in the eye.

"Don't you want to give them that chance?"

Vixey fell completely silent. Tigress stood up and returned to her seat. The others were now thinking about this plan. They grew hopeful. It might just work.

"That is exactly what I was hoping for when we found these people," Shifu said. "These people look willing to take their homes back, no matter the cost."

"Now we just need to attract their attention and tell them our plan," Jin said.

"I nominate Tigress as our speaker," Po immediately said, catching her attention.

Tigress shrugged.

"I guess I can't refuse, can I?" she asked simply.

* * *

Whispering filled the old village. Word passed from campsite to campsite, warranting surprised looks and excited reactions. Some refugees didn't seem very interested in the whispers, but decided to find out anyway. Very few remained in the tents, due to the need to watch over sleeping children and elders, but a mass of refugees walked to the area surrounding a large stone slab that had two torches lit on either side of it.

The Masters stood on top of it, waiting for the crowd to gather. Tigress walked forward.

"We understand you're all curious about the word that has been drifting around," she began.

"You can help us get our homes back?!" came a cry.

The crowd seemed a little excited.

"Yes," Tigress answered. "Please listen to what we have to say. We, too, were chased from our home and have been running ever since. We need help to defeat Ruili, which help you can grant us, if you are willing."

The crowd started murmuring. They all seemed worried and reluctant.

"Those cats are too powerful for any of us!" came Taopa's voice. "We'll all be slaughtered!"

Tigress shook her head.

"We know the lionesses' weaknesses," she said, "and we will tell everyone about them whether you help us or not. But knowing the weaknesses is not enough. We need an army to defeat her army. This entire camp has been the only thing close to that that we have seen so far."

"Many of us are farmers," an elderly pig shouted. "We aren't warriors!"

"No, but you can be," Tigress said. "You are all strong from your professions and capable to defend yourselves. In the time it would take for us to reach the Valley of Peace, we could teach you several simple, yet powerful, techniques."

The crowd now seemed more interested.

"Taking part in this final battle will strengthen us all," Tigress continued. "Win or lose, all defenders will receive great honors, as well as the chance to atone for past mistakes."

All wolves and Polecats seemed to stir at the last words. Boss Wolf seemed hopeful, while Taopa seemed to be lost in memory, about to cry.

"Hear, hear!" Boss Wolf shouted.

"But what about those who can't fight?" a young goose, likely a young mother, shouted.

"We can't just leave them here!" a rabbit added.

Tigress sensed a stir behind her, as if the others had forgotten that crucial part. But she hadn't forgotten it.

"Anyone who can't fight can head straight for Cheng Guang," she said. "Tell Lord Jian Kang what has happened and he will give everyone temporary shelter. This battle shouldn't last very long, with everyone's help. It may even only be a few days before everyone can return to their homes."

Now a majority of the crowd, if not all of it, was getting excited to the point of cheering.

"Who all will help us fight?" Tigress asked.

Almost every hand shot into the air.

"When do we leave?" asked a pig.

"If we are ready, at dawn," Tigress answered.

No one seemed to be upset at the abruptness of the departure time. Tigress bowed to the crowd, which started to disperse immediately, rushing to get to sleep to be ready for the morning.

Tigress turned to walk toward the others. She saw Shifu was pleased with the outcome, as were the others. But Vixey still seemed to linger on her previous thoughts.

"They'll be more worried about avenging their lost," she mumbled. "But... I..."

She jumped to the present when she felt everyone looking at her. She only lowered her head in shame.

"Don't worry, Vixey," Tigress said as she walked by.

"We now need to get some sleep," Shifu said. "It will be a long walk back home."

The Masters walked back to their camp and settled down for the night. Tigress looked up at the stars, not really feeling that tired. Truth to be told, she felt a little anxious.

Then her eyes strayed to her bag. She got up and searched it, withdrawing the small box with the Bajiao candle. She set the small candle on the box and lit it before laying down. The scent filled the air, setting her at ease. She closed her eyes, receiving the feeling that her parents were there, watching over her.

* * *

**Things are getting real!**


	18. Holding Strong

_Chapter Sixteen: Holding Strong_

It was nearly sunrise when the Valley finally came into view. The Masters all lingered a little at the first sight, noticing just how homesick they'd really been. Their group moved toward the Valley, ready for anything.

The tension was incredibly thick as they approached the village closest to the Jade Palace. The walk from the edge of the Valley toward this village was uneventful. But those marching could definitely see that something had changed since they were last in town. But something caught everyone off-guard.

They saw pandas. Pandas were stationed on the borders of the village, guarding from any possible foe. The force of Masters and refugees stopped just feet short of the pandas, and both parties gazed at each other in shock. Then someone broke the silence.

"PO! YOU'RE HOME!"

Po could have leapt a few inches into the air as he heard Mr. Ping's cry and suddenly, the goose was on him, hugging him as tightly as he could. Po saw a wok strapped across his father's back, ready to be used and swung at a moment's notice.

"Dad!" he started. "You're okay!"

"Yes, we all are, son!" Mr. Ping told him as he slid off the panda's belly. "Come, come! You all look famished!"

The large group walked through the village, Po asking and Mr. Ping answering random questions relatives would ask concerning the welfare of one another, while the others looked around, almost horrified of what had become of this little town. Windows were boarded up, shreds of paper laying under windowsills. Chunks of rock were missing from many walls. There were barricades everywhere.

"Where is everyone?" Viper asked.

"Closer to the town square," one of the panda guards, who had followed them, said. "We're nearly there now."

They walked into the town square and were immediately swarmed by villagers, all of whom looked dirty and tired, yet relieved.

"You're back! They're back!" "Welcome home, Masters!" "We missed you!"

"Now, now," Mr. Ping said, lightly swinging his wok, "we must get them to my restaurant! Move aside, please!"

All at once, the villagers parted and let the small army pass. As the Masters and their company passed, they heard excited whispers spreading through the mass. Po looked back and caught Tigress's eye. She gave him a look that was a mix of shock and worry. He felt the same way. Worry because of the condition of the villagers. Shock because the villagers lasted this long, and so well, without their help.

"I can't believe it," Vixey whispered. "They're all okay."

They finally made it inside Mr. Ping's restaurant, which, now, had become a healing station of sorts. Many wounded villagers sat, waiting or being examined by healers, telling of their most recent struggle to keep the Valley safe. Shifu nearly dropped his staff.

"Tian!" he cried. "What are you doing here?!"

His sister, who had been tending to a pig's wounded arm, jumped and looked at him. Her eyes grew very wide.

"Shifu!" she started. "You've finally made it! I was beginning to worry."

She finished binding the pig's arm and sent him away. She started walking toward the new arrivals, but stopped, her glance passing over each and every one of them.

"I told you to go somewhere safe!" Shifu snapped.

"Yes, you said go," Tian answered, "but you didn't say go and _stay_. Now what on earth happened to you?"

Shifu didn't even flinch.

"You knew exactly what I meant!" he snapped. "Ruili found us and wounded me. It isn't much to worry about."

Behind his back, all of his students gave him a very annoyed look, calling his bluff.

"Don't be an idiot, Shifu," Tian chided. "Come with me now."

Shifu suddenly turned to look behind his back to see that only Tigress didn't look away sheepishly. Irritated, he obeyed his sister and followed her into the residence.

"Jin-Jin!" came a cry.

The remaining Masters turned to see Jin swinging Xinli around, their arms wrapped around each other. A group of tigers around Jin's age and dressed similarly to him approached the pair.

"What are you guys all doing here?" Jin asked, setting his girlfriend on her feet.

"We heard something was up!" Xinli answered. "Rumors about the Valley falling, so we had to come see if it was true!"

"So it's a good thing we did come," one of the male tigers said. "Helped these people in a few fights already."

Vixey cleared her throat and turned to Jin.

"Well?" she asked. "Introductions?"

"That's right," Jin started. "I haven't introduced everyone yet. You all know Xinli. The pair over there are her brother, Hei'an and his wife, Zhu."

The two waved as their names were called.

"These guys are Hanjue and Huo Zhang," Jin continued, the tigers also waving as they were introduced, "and those ladies are Yise, Qilan, and Yi Qiang."

He looked around for a second.

"We're all that could come at such short notice," Xinli said. "I don't think anyone else can come in time."

"Every little bit counts," Tigress said.

"No kidding," Hei'an said. "We got a couple guys capable of plowing through entire armies not long ago."

He gestured toward the direction the Masters had come and they all looked. Surprise and relief flooded into each Master. A distance away and coming toward them while speaking with a few villagers, were Masters Ox and Croc.

"Long time, no see," Croc said when he and Ox noticed the group.

Tigress appeared panicked.

"We sent a false trail to Gongmen," she told them. "Ruili's armies...!"

"We found them," Ox said simply. "The moment they saw us, they turned tail and ran."

"We're ze reason zey never made it back," Croc added.

The Masters all relaxed at once.

"Well, that's one big chunk of the main force we don't have to worry about," Mantis said.

"We should go sit down and discuss what needs to be done," Jin said.

As the Masters started to go take a table, Tigress turned to Boss Wolf and Taopa.

"You two need to come as well," she said.

Ox and Croc caught sight of the two surprising allies and watched them walk to the rest of the group. They'd both met Boss Wolf during Shen's rampage. They'd also dealt with Polecats when they caused trouble for traveling Gongmen citizens. What were these two doing here?

Tigress was about to sit down when she heard Tian clear her throat behind her.

"Where's Shifu?" she asked.

"Passed out upstairs," Tian answered simply. "He should wake sometime soon. However, he did tell me about the wounds you received while you were away. Come, dear."

Tigress followed without a word. The remaining Masters and group leaders gathered and took up a majority of the restaurant courtyard. A few healers moved their stations to a building next door.

Ox was about to speak when a panda stumbled into the courtyard, out of breath.

"Dad!" Po cried.

"H-heard you were h-here," Elder said, breathing heavily as he made his way to an open seat. "Now, what where we...?"

He made eye contact with Boss Wolf and grew rather tense. Boss Wolf, however, averted his gaze shamefully.

"I think we need to clear some things up before we start talking about strategies," Ox began.

"Like why are zese felons here?" Croc snapped.

Taopa looked unalarmed at the question. She was about to add a sassy remark of her own when Po cut her off.

"These guys actually want to help us beat Ruili," he said quickly. "We're all on the same side, guys! Can we, you know, calm down and shake hands and get over it?"

Elder was very surprised at his son's plea. Considering what the wolves did to the pandas, he thought he'd be very upset having to deal with Shen's second-in-command.

"Hmph," he started. "I guess I'll concede. But pull anything, you, and I'll take your other eye out."

"Fair 'nuff," Boss Wolf answered, "but I won't be fighting. I can't in this condition."

The two wolves standing behind him nodded gloomily.

"No, but you can issue orders," Jin said. "You can control your kind with different howls."

Boss Wolf nodded.

"Both he and Taopa are here to repay us for what they've done," Viper said.

While Boss Wolf nodded again, Taopa stood up suddenly.

"No, I'm not," she snapped. "I'm here to avenge my aunt!"

She sat down, almost pouting.

"But after this fight, I may think about it," she added, almost too quiet to hear.

Then Elder and Boss Wolf made eye contact again. They stood, painfully for the wolf, and bowed to each other, silently agreeing to an alliance.

Then all eyes turned to Vixey. The fox grew a little nervous.

"Now, it's your turn, Vixey," Crane said.

Vixey was appalled.

"Wh-what?!" she started. "I don't have to do this!"

"Yes, you do," Viper told her. "We know you're still holding on to some things. You need to let it go before anything gets worse."

Vixey looked around speechlessly.

"If Tigress can do it," Monkey added, "so can you."

The words hit Vixey hard. She looked like she was barely able to breathe. She saw that all eyes were on her. Then Taopa stood up, waiting for the fox to do the same.

Vixey slowly stood up. They could easily see that it hurt her to do this, but it was necessary. And she knew it.

Then she locked eyes with Taopa. Then, she caught a glimmer of pain and sorrow behind the sharpness of her gaze. The pain that came with a close relative being cut down right in front of her.

She began to feel a connection to the thief. What came next felt automatic. The fox and Polecat solemnly bowed to each other and sat down, remaining silent.

Viper was about to speak to Ox and Croc, but the former spoke up first.

"Our quarrel was with Shen," he said firmly. "What's done is done."

They all fell silent for a little while.

"So what took you all so long to get here?" Elder asked.

Each of Shifu's students looked up at him.

"To tell you the truth," Mantis started, "we really had no idea what to do."

"We weren't really prepared for something like this," Viper admitted.

"I'm actually pretty proud of how the villagers have been handling this," Crane added. "I don't think even Shifu expected them to just pick up anything and fight with what they have."

"That is because they attacked you!" Mr. Ping said out of the blue, placing bowls of soup in front of everyone. "We couldn't just let them do that! So, now, we will fight back!"

He grabbed the wok he was carrying on his back and lifted it high above his head, almost hitting Monkey in the face with it as it swung past him.

"Whoa, whoa, Dad!" Po cried. "Watch where you swing that thing!"

Those near the old goose ducked and jumped out of reach of the wok as it swung past them again. He turned back toward his kitchen, humming happily to himself.

Everyone watched him leave.

"I think he's getting too much of a kick out of this," Xinli said.

"So did anyone get any information on what we're dealing with?" Elder asked.

"Ruili's weaknesses and those of her army's," Tigress said, suddenly appearing from the residence. "We also got her motive. Vixey, Tian wants to see you next."

Vixey stood up and walked past Tigress, who sat down nearby.

"What's her story this time?" Ox asked.

"Her people were abused by Imperial soldiers," Jin said. "She planned to tear down authority, starting with us, and going through Gongmen and then the Emperor himself in turn."

"Bold move," Elder said grimly.

"We've already begun turning this into her worst case scenario," Crane said. "She didn't want Gongmen involved until she would attack the city itself."

"If she planned things thoroughly," Tigress started, "she should have killed us all immediately after our captures."

Xinli's eyes widened.

"You all got caught and escaped?" she asked. "How many times were you guys caught?"

"Twice for Tigress," Monkey said, flinching at the look he received from her.

"Zen what about ze weaknesses?" Croc asked.

"All the lionesses are strong, but clumsy," Taopa said. "They can't use weapons effectively."

"The pale one at their head is as powerful and very sturdy," Tigress said. "On her own, however, we learned she's most vulnerable."

"We still have Rong Da to worry about," Po added, "but you guys already know how to fight him."

Ox and Croc nodded.

"Ruili might be the easiest one to deal with," Boss Wolf said. "I doubt she fights well."

"So do we," Crane said. "If she hasn't practiced in ages, she won't stand a chance."

"Which would be why she's been surrounding herself with soldiers," Elder said.

"But there's something else that might help us with the lionesses," Viper said with a worried glance. "They're all fighting against their will. Their husbands were killed as an example and their children are being held hostage."

"Our prisoner had also said that she hates their leader," Tigress added. "I assume this is true for most or all lionesses."

"This gives us excellent ground," Ox said. "We may be able to turn all of them against Ruili and her captains."

"All that's left to discuss now is how we'll take the Palace," Boss Wolf said. "My men can get in and take down the cannons. We built them, so we can surely destroy them."

"Getting in may be the real problem."

Everyone turned to see Shifu coming into the courtyard. He looked to be more irritated than before Tian took him inside.

"No one can tell by looking at it from here how many people are inside," he continued.

Everyone fell silent, thinking about the best solution.

"If we could only get a set of eyes inside the Jade Palace..." Elder started, frustrated.

"Already on it," Jin said, pointing at Tigress.

Everyone looked over at her. She seemed to be meditating, undisturbed by any and all noise. Ox caught on quickly.

"Wait... She's a Seer?" he asked.

"We found that out not too long ago," Po said.

"Let's brainstorm more potential strategies while she goes to work," Viper said.

* * *

_It was strange watching all these strangers walking around the Jade Palace. Tigress walked through the entirety of her home, looking at where guards were posted and how many enemies were there. She felt no need to move stealthily, since they couldn't see her and she was in no danger of harm whatsoever._

_She walked into the barracks and found Guai Hu with a few lionesses looking over a set of scrolls. One of the scrolls was a map, while another was what looked like orders from Ruili. She looked over Guai's shoulder and read the entire scroll._

_She grinned to herself. It was pitiful how they thought these scrolls were away from prying eyes. This particular scroll listed the entire battle plan, including when they planned to attack._

_Tigress suddenly realized she leaned in too close, because Guai waved at the air near her ear as if to ward away a fly. But she'd seen all she needed._

_Now, she needed to find one final person._

_She left the barracks and immediately saw Rong Da, sitting near the edge of a cliff. He was fuming about his brother's death while sharpening a battle axe._

_Tigress moved to Shifu's study, where she finally found who she was looking for._

_Ruili stood at the desk, facing away from Tigress. The tiger took a few steps forward._

"_So you've arrived at the Valley."_

_Tigress stopped. The otter turned to look at her._

"_You aren't invisible to all eyes, you know," she growled. "It's foolish to come sneaking up on me."_

"_It's a habit," Tigress told her. "But there's something I need to know. Did you really think you could get away with chasing us away? It seems your 'Power to the People' plan isn't working as well as you would hope."_

_Ruili narrowed her eyes._

"_These people should have been happy that you were gone," she started. "They are insane. What did _you _do to deceive them like this?"_

"_Not everyone in an exalted position tortures their subjects," Tigress said. "We don't think of ourselves as overlords. We're equal with our people, and we've used every opportunity to let them know that. We serve and protect them, and in return, they respect us. That is all we ask from them."_

"_I find that very hard to believe," the otter hissed._

"_I don't think you understand the difference between a corrupted Lord and a bitter commoner," Tigress told her firmly. "For your information, there is no difference."_

_Ruili's rage grew to the point of crying out and striking at Tigress. But instead, she fell right through the Master's unflinching projection. She climbed wearily to her feet and turned around. Then she fell to her knees, grasped her chest, and coughed heavily._

_Confident she learned everything she needed, Tigress closed her eyes and felt herself rushing back to her body._

* * *

"Ruili is dying," she suddenly announced.

Everyone stopped what they were doing.

"Dying?" Ox asked. "Are you sure?"

"She could see me," Tigress said. "No one can do that unless they're dying or a Seer. I seriously doubt Ruili is the latter."

"It's my fault."

Everyone looked at Shifu.

"What do you mean?" Tian asked.

"When she and I were fighting," Shifu said reluctantly, "I was about to use a nerve strike to allow us to get away. But she struck me and I slipped. I was afraid this would be the outcome."

Everyone fell silent. Po looked around at everyone.

"Wait, we're afraid of Ruili dying?" he asked. "Isn't that a good thing? We might not need to fight at all!"

"That isn't the case, Po," Crane said.

"A dying opponent is the worst you can face," Viper added.

Still seeing confusion on the panda's face, Tigress decided to elaborate.

"Any foe can know that they're going to lose and be much more dangerous," she started, "but they're still afraid to die. Opponents like Ruili, who know they're dying..."

"They can and will do remarkable things to take their opponents down with them," Tian finished. "Wouldn't you do the same?"

Po now had a look of horror on his face.

"They plan to attack at dawn," Tigress said. "It would be best for us to strike before they do. Most of the lionesses are in the arena, but they do seem to be low on morale."

"Did you expect anything different?" Vixey asked.

"All of Ruili's remaining forces seem to be here," Tigress continued. "Master, do you have a plan for us?"

All eyes turned to Shifu, who seemed to be deep in thought. But he looked confident.

"My students and I will lead the frontal assault," he started. "Ox and Croc, we need you down here to protect the villagers as they fight."

The two Masters nodded.

"Once we clear a path," Shifu continued, "send the wolves in to destroy the cannons and cause as much damage as you can to the enemy."

Boss Wolf nodded as well.

"Taopa, loop around to the back of the Palace before we attack and find any way to get in to disable any foe you find. As you have gotten past us before, you should have no problem now."

Taopa almost grinned. This was what she and her band of thieves had been trained to do, after all.

"And us, Master?" Elder asked.

"Protect the majority of our citizens and send any extra warrior into the fight," Shifu told him. "Encourage the villagers when they grow tired and rescue them when they fall injured."

"Does everyone understand what they need to do?" Tigress asked.

"We can fill in wherever we're needed," Xinli said confidently. "We can be pretty devastating."

"Gather and organize your forces," Shifu said. "We will meet again here when we're ready."

Everyone agreed and split off.

* * *

It was nearly dusk. Villagers, warriors, and thieves alike all acted like trained soldiers when told to assemble and no question was repeated. The final meal of the day had been distributed and each fighter stayed with his or her group and slept for the night.

The leaders came back to Mr. Ping's restaurant. An eerie silence had long since fallen, in anticipation of tomorrow's final fight.

"Everyone is ready," Tigress said.

"They even refused to go back home to sleep," Viper said. "I'm really proud of these guys."

"My people will get into position after I leave," Taopa said. "We'll sleep in the forest. We prefer to be well prepared in a situation such as this."

A solemn silence fell.

"No matter how tomorrow goes," Ox said, "it will all be over by day's end."

"Is this what everyone feels right before a huge battle?" Xinli asked. "This is pretty scary."

"But we'll all be okay," Jin said.

He squeezed her hand.

"In case this battle does turn for the worse," Shifu began, "it was a pleasure fighting and serving with you."

Everyone in the circle bowed.

"Now get some rest," Tian said. "Tomorrow will be a very long day."

* * *

**I know Po's dad has a name (sorta funny how I named Tigress's dad "Li", which happens to be the same name as Po's dad), but I'm going to stick with "Elder" for the remainder of my stories due to my stories happening after KFP2 as if KFP3 never happens.**


	19. The Entrance Battle

_Chapter Nineteen: The Entrance Battle_

Everything was silent as the sun rose and the world became lighter. The air was very tense.

There seemed to be no movement, even from guards at the entrance of the arena. They couldn't see any smoke in the village, the usual sign that anyone was awake. Yet, they remained diligent, scanning their surroundings.

Then, the first sounds of the day: a single grunt from both guards as they were struck and fell. Shifu and Mantis motioned for the others to come.

Crane carefully peered over the wall.

"I can't see anyone," he said.

"They're hiding," Tigress said. "I saw this place packed full of lionesses. It was standing room only. How's it going, Viper?"

The snake appeared from around the corner.

"It's open," she said, "but I think only smaller people can get through. I don't think it'd even fit you now."

Shifu chuckled to himself.

"So you did find that entrance," he said.

"Entrance?" Po asked.

"When we were younger," Tigress began, "Viper and I explored every inch of the Jade Palace, also discovering passages we thought only we knew."

"This one leads to behind the Hall of Heroes," Viper said. "From there, I'll be able to find the one leading to the barracks."

"Mantis, Vixey, go with her," Shifu said. "I will come, too. The rest of you, make a way to those cannons."

The four Masters disappeared.

"Are you all ready to clear a path?" Tigress asked.

The remaining Masters and most of the wolves nodded. Tigress carefully opened one of the large doors. It creaked, but not very loudly due to Tigress's careful handling. She motioned for some to survey one side of the arena and the rest to check the other.

The silence was unnerving. The invasion team checked every crevice, finding no one. Then they were about to check the upper level.

Everything happened at once. Lionesses pounced from above and there was chaos down below. The Masters each found themselves mobbed by the golden felines, but suddenly they were all pushed out of the fight. When they looked back, they saw the wolves swinging at the lionesses with everything they have. They looked like they were having fun.

"They know we're here," Tigress said. "We need to get to those cannons now."

The Masters ran up the staircase, watching for any enemy movement.

"Ruili would be stupid to keep all of her forces down there," Jin said. "Prepare for a fight."

Tigress motioned for them to slow to a stop at the top of the stairs. They looked and found several unconscious lionesses.

"What took you guys so long?" Vixey asked, suddenly appearing behind a nearby tree. "You missed the party."

"You have no idea," Monkey said as Shifu, Viper, and Mantis came into view, looking as if they'd just scanned the perimeter of the Hall of Heroes.

"Something isn't right," Shifu started. "There should have been more here..."

Suddenly, many lionesses appeared as if from thin air, surrounding the Masters and heavily outnumbering them. Then Rong Da emerged from the Hall of Heroes. And on his shoulder...

"Welcome home, Masters," Ruili growled. "This would have been much easier for you if you had just surrendered."

Then she turned to one of the lionesses that was awaiting her order.

"Open fire on the village."

* * *

**Short chapter, but it's only beginning...**


	20. Capturing the Palace

_Chapter Twenty: Capturing the Palace_

The Masters saw the lioness dash away. There was little time.

"Get ready, guys!" Vixey shouted.

She threw a ball at her own feet and disappeared into a white cloud of dust. Immediately, Ruili and her forces panicked and became frustrated. They all looked at whatever direction the Masters could have disappeared into. Then Ruili realized something important and looked back at where the Masters had been - and still were.

"It was a distraction, you imbeciles!" she screamed.

By the time the lionesses had realized this, too, the Masters were breaking a hole in the lioness circle. As soon as they were free, the Masters scattered. Shifu, Tigress, and Jin ran for Ruili and chased her as the otter leapt off Rong Da's shoulder. The others ran to disable and destroy the cannons positioned on the cliffs.

Po managed to defeat three lionesses and shove their cannons off the cliffs before seeing his reflection in a battle axe as it missed him by a hair. He turned to see Rong Da and rolled out of the way of his axe in the nick of time. But he was slow getting to his feet.

"Po! Watch out!"

Tigress jumped out of nowhere and shoved him away from the cliff and the bear.

"Ah!"

Po swore he'd just seen her jump out of the way. But her small cry of pain mid-jump struck him to the core. Rong Da approached her as she knelt to deal with the pain.

"This is for my brother!" he screamed, lifting his axe high overhead.

"No!" Po cried, throwing his entire body at him.

They started to tumble upon impact and Po barely untangled himself from his enemy as the bear fell off the cliff and out of view. He stood there for a few more seconds before turning and running to Tigress.

"Are you okay?!" he started.

Tigress winced and took her paw away from the wound site.

"It stings," she said honestly, "but it isn't even bleeding. I'm okay."

They turned when they heard other cannons firing.

"Get to those cannons!" Tigress shouted, racing ahead of Po.

* * *

_KLANNNNGGGG!_

The wok hit the lioness full in the face, knocking her out instantly. Mr. Ping started running toward another enemy, but was knocked aside by Tian. She jumped out of the way of the incoming attack she'd just saved the goose from and knocked three lionesses away at once. But they were closing in.

Then there was a rush of tigers and the lionesses scattered. Tian reserved the moment to analyze the situation.

"We're losing people fast," she told Xinli. "The cannons damaged several structures and we're trying to get people out."

"I think it's time we used our secret plan," the tiger told her.

Tian nodded.

"Good luck," she said before rushing off to rescue more allies.

Xinli started to climb up a nearby house.

"Hold them off!" she shouted at her friends.

She climbed to the roof and looked at the endless number of lionesses. She'd been particularly frightened when they emerged from the streams shortly after the raiding party ascended the stairs.

"Why are you fighting us?" she shouted. "Do you really think your husbands will be at peace with you doing this?"

There was little difference in the sea of lionesses. Mr. Ping hid under his wok as a lioness tried to flatten him. Tian was thrown into a building as one of her spells failed. Ox and Croc were beginning to be overwhelmed by the endless stream of lionesses.

"Save your breath, stripes!" Guai Hu shouted, starting to make her way toward the building Xinli was on. "Do you really think they'll listen to you?"

"Think of your children!" Xinli continued, unfazed. "Do you really think Ruili will just give you your children back after the fighting's over?"

There was an obvious stir among the lionesses now. They stopped fighting and simply stood there, watching Xinli. The others from Miao Zhen kept their allies from attacking, letting their friend continue her work.

"Ruili won't give you your kids!" Xinli proclaimed. "She won't because the fighting won't end! It never will!"

The lionesses started to murmur and worry.

"Don't listen to her!" Guai shouted. "What use are children anyway? They're no good for anything!"

Instantly, the lionesses turned angrily to her.

"Do you hear what she's saying?" Xinli shouted, raising her staff. "That just proves it! Ruili will never let you go home! But all who fight for us will go home! Strike for the Valley! Strike for the Emperor! Strike against Ruili!"

The lionesses all converged on the cougar, those closest leaping onto her. Then, like a bomb went off, the lionesses were thrown back. Guai, in her rage, jumped onto the building to race after Xinli. The tiger then jumped off in the opposite direction. All the Miao Zhen warriors ran after the two.

Tian stood up wearily. She looked toward the direction where Guai and the tigers had run and then at the horde of lionesses, most of them weeping for the end of the fighting. Then she looked up at the Jade Palace.

"Is everything all right?" Elder asked.

"I sense... something's wrong," Tian replied. "Very wrong. But I can't tell which direction it's in."

"The bats!" cried one of the lionesses as they all started to scatter. "Watch out for the bats!"

"Bats?" Tian started.

Then she and Elder dove under the larger pieces of a collapsed building as small objects impacted the ground around them. When the hail stopped, Tian picked up one of the projectiles. They were tiny arrows with incredibly sharp heads. She and Elder looked out at the specks of black in the sky.

"Move!" she screamed as another barrage rained down.

A smaller lioness, likely to be barely of fighting age, dove for shelter next to Tian. She was sobbing.

"How do we stop the bats?" Tian asked gently. "Please tell us. The sooner this fight ends, the sooner you can go home."

The girl looked at her, shaking and with wet eyes.

"They can't fly well at day," she said. "They were there in case we turned. I don't want to die!"

"You won't have to," Tian told her.

"Just stay here and we'll handle the rest," Elder said.

The two elders were about to emerge from their shelter when the lioness caught Tian's sleeve.

"And they don't like fire," she told her.

There seemed to be a blaze in Tian's eyes.

"Oh, do they?" she started. "Well, I'll just see to that."

She ran off as others began lighting arrows.

* * *

At the Jade Palace, there was pure chaos. Lionesses where everywhere, trying to find and subdue the Masters. But they were learning that this was as hard to accomplish as it was chasing a mole around its own burrow, even with their numbers.

While Shifu and the girls kept appearing and disappearing due to the secret passages, Po simply fled into the Hall of Heroes. He ran to find a good hiding place as lionesses streamed into the building. They didn't have to look far. As they began to creep closer to him, he leapt out from behind the pillar.

"D-don't make me use this!" he warned.

He started moving his hands as if he was brandishing a quarterstaff. But they could see... nothing. Just as they started to laugh at him, he swung at the closest lioness, hitting the side of her face with an invisible force and knocking her out. The rest of the lionesses looked startled.

"Hooyeaah!" Po shouted. "Invisible Trident of Destiny! Come get some!"

The lionesses got angry again and started to pounce. But the panda merely swept them each aside with his weapon.

Until one of the lionesses hit the trident just right that it spun out of Po's hands. They could only tell this happened when it clanged to the floor.

"Uh, wh... What about the..." Po started as he backed up. "The Invisible Shruikens of... Invisibility... ness? Of Awesomeness!"

He pretended to throw shruikens, but the lionesses didn't even flinch. Po felt the wall against his back and tried to think of any ideas that wouldn't end in his death.

Before long, however, the lioness closest to him flinched and fell to the floor. Then the rest of the lionesses acted like they were being peppered by something before falling as well.

Po looked up and found that he and the lionesses weren't the only ones here.

"What took you idiots so long?" Taopa asked, descending one of the pillars. "We've been here for hours."

Approximately two dozen other Polecats remained in their hiding places.

"You guys only hid in here?" Po asked.

"Don't you remember how many of us there are?" Taopa asked sharply. "I have people in the woods, the barracks, and the Training Hall. We have reason to believe that Ruili is still somewhere in the barracks, but we couldn't track her without giving away our positions."

"'Kay," Po said. "Got it."

"And if that otter's still alive after all this," Taopa told him, "you'd better not get in my way when I skin her alive."

Po looked rather frightened. He inched toward the door as the Polecat turned and climbed back up to her post.

Po ran out the doors and was surprised to see Qilan running toward him.

"Have you seen Jin?" she asked, quite obviously very worried.

"I haven't in a while," Po told her. "Why?"

Qilan turned to look at the Valley, she and Po seeing a huge burst of fire form in the sky and scattering the tiny black spots flying overhead.

"Tell him Xinli wants to see him," she said. "Make sure he knows!"

"I will!" Po shouted as the tiger ran back toward the Valley.

Then he turned in time to see Tigress running by.

"Tigress!" he called. "Taopa says Ruili's probably in the barracks!"

"I know!" Tigress told him. "I just saw her heading this way!"

Po started running with her and the other Masters made their way to the two.

"Jin!" Po said. "Xinli wanted to talk to you!"

Jin hesitated, looked back at the Valley for a moment, and then quickened his pace.

"Let's finish Ruili first," he said. "I can talk to her after that."

"There she is!" Crane called. "She just went inside!"

The Masters charged through the barracks doors.


	21. Purged of Tyrants

_Chapter Twenty-One: Purged of Tyrants_

The barracks was silent. No sounds of fighting outside could even be heard.

"Check every room," Shifu whispered. "Leave nothing untouched."

The Masters began to spread out a little. While each of his students searched the rooms, Shifu scanned every inch of the hallway and listened intently for any sound of movement. He moved forward very slowly, as if he was stalking the otter.

Then he froze. At the other end of the hall, a dark figure suddenly materialized. She looked directly at him as if she was waiting for him to move.

"Ruili!" Shifu shouted.

He dashed forward as his students came running out of the other rooms. Ruili ran as soon as Shifu did. Knowing she was weak and wanting it to be over, Shifu doubled his pace. If anyone could catch her, he could.

Then he stopped very suddenly, almost at the spot Ruili had been.

His students slowed to a stop as he turned slowly to look at them. They all looked down at his feet.

He was trapped in a snare.

"Master?" Tigress started.

"Not a step closer," Shifu said very firmly. "This was meant to take us all out. Once I activate this trap, continue after Ruili."

"But... you might..." Vixey began.

"No stupid trap can kill me," Shifu told them. "Catch Ruili and end this battle."

He swung his staff at a nearby rope that no one else had seen. It was as if the walls around Shifu were blasted away and suddenly, he was gone. The other Masters ran to the hole in the outer wall, helplessly watching their Master fly toward the Valley among splintered wood.

"We need to go!" Tigress ordered. "Now!"

The others, hesitantly at first, pried their eyes off where their Master had now disappeared to and continued running after Ruili.

* * *

Tian tripped as she tried to evade the deadly arrows. As she prepared a barrier that likely wouldn't protect her from everything, a small figure landed right next to her.

"Don't you dare touch my sister!" Shifu shouted.

With only his staff, which at times seemed invisible, he deflected every single arrow and took out every bat that had shot at them, scattering the rest.

Tian picked herself up.

"Shifu! The students!" she started.

Shifu looked back up at the Palace.

"They're on their own now," he told her.

* * *

The Masters now scanned everything in sight, cautious to find any trap set to catch them, while trying to find Ruili again. They turned a corner to go down the other hallway and were startled.

There was Ruili, a few feet away, staring at them very calmly. It was unnerving.

"How can you still be here?" she asked. "All together? Through days and weeks of hardship, you haven't splintered. Surely, the poison should have destroyed you."

Po scoffed.

"What poison?" he asked. "You're not making any sense!"

"Don't you know?" Ruili told them all. "Something vile is creeping up on all of you. Between you. Filling the entirety of your beings."

The Masters were all confused, but didn't let down their guard.

"A quickened heartbeat," Ruili continued, "a slight burning, some shaking, a few cold chills."

"What are you talking about?" Po demanded. "Nothing's coming up between any of us!"

However, Tigress's gaze shifted to her fists. They were trembling. And she felt like she was about to shiver.

"Panic begins to set in," the otter continued on, catching Tigress's shift in attention. "As panic sets in, it all goes by so fast."

True to what her enemy said, Tigress could feel her heart racing and she began to panic. This had to end now.

"Get her!" she cried.

As soon as any of the Masters took one step forward, Ruili darted away. As they chased her down the hall, she suddenly fled into one of the rooms. As they ran in, they realized it was the storage room. Crates and cleaning utensils were piled up almost to the ceiling. There was almost no room for all of them to fight in here.

Then it was as if several crates exploded. The closest Masters attempted to strike Ruili as she darted around the room. She continued to jump at crates to shatter them with her body, sending projectiles at her enemies. She kept evading attacks as if she was a snake in a bog.

Then she escaped the storage room. The Masters chased her to the kitchen, where she made a mess of everything as she had done in the storage room. Monkey and Vixey were temporarily dazed by flying pots and pans and the others were lucky to just evade them.

They continued to chase Ruili from room to room, only to have each place demolished and Ruili to escape again and again. Frustration was growing as she leapt away again.

"She's getting away!" Viper cried.

They saw Ruili charge toward another room, deliberately crashing through a part of the doorway, causing timbers to start crashing down. In a split-second decision, Tigress slid under everything without getting a scratch. The entrance was now completely blocked.

"Come on! Hurry!" Monkey shouted on the other side of the debris.

"Get her, Tigress!" Vixey called. "We'll get through as soon as we can!"

On the opposite end of the room, Ruili was on her hands and knees, panting. Tigress approached carefully, ready for a surprise attack.

"Still standing, are you?" Ruili asked, a rasp in her voice. "I'm surprised you haven't collapsed yet."

"What are you talking about?" Tigress demanded. "I'm nowhere near collapsing yet!"

Ruili turned wearily to her.

"I saw it all from my window," she said. "I saw you push that great fuzz ball out of the way and, from the way you jumped back, I was sure you'd been struck."

Tigress's mind raced back to that moment, when she'd saved Po's life. Yes, she had been cut, but it hadn't bled.

_It hadn't bled_. Tigress reached for the wound and her hand came back bloody.

"Proof," Ruili cackled. "You don't have long at all."

"I have long enough to take you down!" Tigress told her desperately.

"We'll see about that," Ruili growled, and she leapt at the tiger.

The room was wrecked within seconds. Tigress did a great deal more dodging than attacking. Ruili dove at her every chance she had, and she was extremely fast.

Tigress struck out and missed often. She did land a few hits, but Ruili had jumped out of the way so quickly that they were near-misses and lacked full power.

Then, a lucky strike. She put all her strength behind a punch and made contact with Ruili's chest. The otter flew into a shelf that splintered and collapsed on her. As the shelf fell apart, Ruili fell out of the wreckage and tumbled to a stop.

Tigress cautiously approached the otter, but her enemy hadn't moved.

Ruili chuckled.

"How proud you must be," she said. "You just saved the Valley... but you haven't saved yourself. I knew I would die... I only wanted to get that poison racing through your veins... Now you'll die, too... You will all... die..."

She attempted to laugh, but lacked the energy. She fell silent and unmoving.

Tigress gasped for breath. She felt like her heart was going to pound out of her chest. She looked at the dead otter and then at the wreckage that kept her friends from getting through. She took a step and fell forward, losing the strength to proceed.

"H-hurry," she said weakly.

She watched the broken planks and other debris shift slightly as her sight began to fade.

"Come on!" Vixey cried. "We need to get through! Mantis, did you find a hole?"

Mantis grunted with exertion and tumbled forward as the debris finally let him through. He rolled to his feet and jumped toward Tigress. He was shocked to see that she was bleeding from a wound in her abdomen.

"Tigress! Come on! Wake up!" Mantis told her.

Tigress's gaze went from him to the wreckage in the doorway and back to him.

"I've done my duty..." she said weakly and promptly fainted.

"It doesn't look good!" he cried, trying to revive her. "Hurry!"

"We're trying!" Po shouted.

The debris shifted enough for him to see. He nearly fainted. Tigress was bleeding a lot. When he saw what was causing the bleeding, his heart nearly stopped.

"She said that wasn't bleeding!" he cried.

"What?" Vixey asked. "What wasn't bleeding?"

"She got cut when she pushed me away!" Po told her. "Rong Da almost got me with an axe, but-!"

Vixey turned petrified.

"She's poisoned," she said. "Viper! She's poisoned! Hurry!"

"I'm on it!" the snake replied.

She climbed over the debris and slid through the hole Po had found. As soon as she was near enough, she shot forward and sank her fangs into Tigress's wrist. When she let go, she began helping Mantis try to wake her up and get her to stop bleeding.

"I'll get the healers!" Crane cried before flying out the wrecked Palace wall.

"Jin!" Monkey said. "Get Shifu! He needs to know!"

Jin nodded and also fled the Palace.

The remaining Masters finally cleared the wreckage and rushed to Tigress, who remained unresponsive. Vixey checked her pulse and breathing.

"Please don't die on us, Tigress!" she cried, tears falling down her cheeks. "Please don't!"

* * *

"Master!"

Shifu turned to see Jin sliding down the mountain from the Palace. The young tiger's expression worried him.

"Has Ruili been defeated?" he asked.

"Yes," Jin said, out of breath. "But it's Tigress! She was poisoned and Crane is getting the healers! We're not sure if she'll make it..."

He was sure Shifu would have fallen down if he weren't holding his staff. He caught a movement a distance behind the old Master and saw Tian race off toward the Palace.

"Did... did Viper..." Shifu began to ask.

"Yes," Jin told him. "Viper bit her just before I left."

"Then let us pray that was enough to keep her alive," Shifu said. "Assist the villagers. Many of them were wounded."

"I'll see to it," Jin answered.

Shifu took a moment to gather himself before racing after his sister. Jin watched him go and then realized - Xinli! She had wanted to speak with him! He ran to find her.

* * *

"Jin! Where have you been?"

Jin stopped running to find Huo Zhang.

"Where is she?" he asked him. "Where's Xinli? She wanted to talk to me!"

His friend looked shocked and a little scared to tell him.

"She's... she's over here!" he said. "Come! Quickly!"

The mood scared Jin. He followed his friend to a house not far from Mr. Ping's restaurant. He ran up the staircase after his friend and stopped in the doorway of a room.

Xinli lay on the bed on the far end of the room. Hei'an knelt next to the bed and laid his head on her chest, looking as if he was crying. Zhu sat next to him, tears in her eyes, and rubbing her husband's back.

"Jin," she said, "I'm sorry. She just passed."

At first, Jin couldn't believe what he was hearing. She was lying. She had to be. He felt frozen as he looked at his beloved girlfriend, laying on that bed with her brother and sister-in-law crying over her.

Then the dam broke.


	22. The Most Affected

_Chapter Twenty-Two: The Most Affected_

Shifu didn't feel exhausted at all when he reached the top of the giant staircase. He crossed the arena in a flash and kept running for the barracks. He knew they'd be there.

His heart was threatening to pound out of his chest. Terrible thoughts entered his mind.

_First I lost Tai Lung, and now Tigress? No, she's not dead. Viper and Tian will have seen to that... Tigress dead... It couldn't be possible... At least I will have lost her to a much more noble cause... No! She isn't dead!_

He almost felt like crying at the thought of possibly losing another child. Now he realized that his exhaustion was beginning to creep up on him. His lungs were burning and his legs were aching. He couldn't stop now. Tigress needed him. If there was ever a time that she needed him as a father rather than a teacher, it would be now.

He stopped at the barracks door and nearly collapsed. As much as he wanted to go inside, he had to rest to keep from fainting. After a few torturous minutes, he finally went inside. He walked toward the bedrooms and stopped.

All his students, with the exception of the tigers, were there. All but Vixey took notice of him right away.

"Master!" Po started. "Jin found you?"

"Yes," Shifu said. "How is she?"

"She almost stopped breathing when the healers came and got her," Viper told him. "They're... working on her now..."

They all looked at the one closed door.

Shifu noticed that Vixey hadn't moved at all. She sat against the wall and hugged her knees to her chest as if she were trapped in a cage. Her wide, frightened eyes were glued on the door.

"Vixey?" he started.

The fox started whimpering. Tears started falling. She buried her face in her arms and started shaking.

Viper tried to comfort her.

"Vixey?" she asked. "Are you okay?"

"Nooo," the fox replied in a quiet, teary whimper. "This-this can't be h-happening... First th-them and n-now her... "

The hall turned silent, except for Vixey's quiet sobs. It seemed like forever before the door opened a crack. Tian looked out into the hall.

"Shifu?" she asked. "She was asking for you."

The Masters all lit up. Tigress was awake!

"Yes," Shifu answered. "I'll be in straight away."

He leaned his staff on the wall and walked into the room. His students noticed that his limp was worse than they'd ever seen it.

Viper turned to Vixey.

"See?" she said calmly. "She's awake. She'll be okay, and she won't die that easily."

Vixey rested her chin on her now-soaked sleeves and kept her eyes on the door. An occasional tear fell across her cheeks.

It seemed like an eternity before the door opened again. Shifu emerged, and he looked more tired than ever.

"She will live," he told his students.

They all sighed with relief and were on the verge of celebration. However, Shifu held up his hand for silence.

"But there were complications," he continued. "She will live and she will be able to use Kung Fu again, but the poisoning has done some damage to her that looks irreversible."

Vixey whimpered again.

"Calm down," Shifu said. "It will take some time for her to recover. She will have to be off her feet for maybe a few months. Tian has informed me that the poison could relapse at any point in her future and likely cause a life-threatening situation each time."

The hall fell silent once again. Po hesitated before speaking.

"Can we see her?" he asked.

"Yes," Shifu said. "But do not overwhelm her. This was quite stressful for her. Tian may usher you out of the room when she deems it necessary."

The door then opened and three tired healers came out. They didn't seem to notice the Masters as they walked away. Tian finally stepped into the doorway. She looked as tired as her brother, if not more.

"If you want to see her," she began, "you must do so quickly. She's exhausted."

The Masters, at first hesitantly, then more speedily, filed into Tigress's room. They stopped a foot or two from her bed and gazed down numbly at their friend.

Tigress certainly did not look well. She lay almost unmoving on her bed, covered up to her shoulders by her blanket. Her eyes were closed and her chest was rising and falling with each tired breath. At first, they all thought she was already asleep. Then she opened her eyes.

"Did... did I scare you?" she asked weakly.

No one answered her for a second.

"Sorta," Po said. "I mean, yeah, of course you did."

Tigress breathed a few times.

"I scared me, too," she answered. "I honestly thought... Are you okay, Vixey?"

The fox jumped a little at the mention of her name. She nodded.

"I'm... I'm fine," she said.

"I'm sorry this happened," Tigress told her. "Especially after what happened to you."

Vixey looked at her feet and nodded again.

"I'm sure Shifu told you guys most of it," Tigress said. "That I can't use Kung Fu or even sit up right now. So you know what must happen for now."

Po grew alarmed.

"What must happen?" he asked.

"I can't be part of the Furious Five while I'm in this condition," Tigress told him. "I'm temporarily resigning. Viper will take my place as leader and you, Po, will join the Five for now."

"Wh-what?!" Po started. "Whaddyou mean?! I mean, being one of you guys was my ultimate dream, but... It can't happen this way!"

"It has to, Po," Tigress told him. "I hate to say it, but it has to."

"We all knew about this plan when we teamed up," Viper said. "We know we can't live forever, and even an event like this one could happen. Haven't you noticed that I step up whenever Tigress has been knocked unconscious or when she isn't even here? We've been preparing for this for a long time. And I don't like it either. It isn't the same without all of us. But I accept this position and will do what I can to fill it until I'm relieved or the day I die."

The rest of the Five nodded. Po looked at his friends in disbelief and shock. It hurt to say anything, but he knew he had to.

"I will, too," he answered, his voice a little croaky. "It's my job to protect everyone as the Dragon Warrior, so I accept the position with honor and humility."

"Thank you, Po," Tigress said. "I'll be back to normal in no time. Don't you worry."

Po could only nod. He couldn't say anything else.

They all heard Tian clear her throat and turned to look at her.

"It's getting late," she said. "Tigress will need her rest. A rested group of healers has just come to check on all of you and help you clean up. Have a good meal and retire early, all of you."

A quiet chorus of "Yes'm" and "Yes, ma'am" answered her as the boys all left Tigress's room. Viper was about to leave when she noticed that Vixey hadn't moved.

"Um... Tigress?" the fox asked. "I was... I was wondering..."

Tigress had closed her eyes, but opened them when Vixey began speaking.

"Yes?" she asked.

Vixey looked reluctant to speak her mind.

"I was wondering if... if you needed either of us to stay here, in your room for the night," she said at last. "You know, just in case you relapsed. Viper and me, I mean."

"That isn't a bad idea," Viper added. "Then Tian wouldn't have to stick around this area as much."

Tian seemed to want to argue, but then stopped herself and began to think about it.

"I can't see why not," Tigress said wearily. "You know how I hate feeling like I have a bodyguard. But I'd rather have you here than have something terrible happen when I'm alone. Thank you, Vixey."

"I will take the first watch," Tian told the girls. "You two need your sleep."

"Mm-hm," Vixey said quietly, nodding.

She and Viper left the room without a sound.

* * *

The Masters all sat quietly in the totaled barracks kitchen. Mr. Ping was quietly humming to himself as he finished making soup and served it out to everyone.

"All of you eat it all up," he told them. "You'll need your strength if we're going to clean all this mess up! Oy yoy..."

He picked up a broom and started sweeping up around the Masters, who were now eating without a sound. Vixey looked up and around at the others.

"Master?" she started. "Where's Jin? Didn't he come back?"

Shifu stopped eating for a moment, thinking over his words.

"He won't be coming back," he answered. "Not for some time."

The others grew alert.

"Why isn't he?" Monkey asked.

Shifu paused again.

"He's going back to Miao Zhen to... recover from a loss," he said gently. "We lost Xinli."

His students became distraught.

"What?" Viper asked. "Xinli died?"

"She and Guai Hu took each other's lives," Shifu answered.

Silence fell again, except for Mr. Ping, who was clearly not paying attention as he was humming to himself. They continued eating, very shaken by the events of today. They all knew it would be different from here on out.

* * *

**Depressing chapter, I know, but at least Tigress is alive!**


	23. A Final Surprise

_Chapter Twenty-Three: A Final Surprise_

Tigress watched the wilted little plant on her window sill as the sky behind it turned redder and darker. She was clearly unhappy. Vixey couldn't help but notice this, but said nothing. Nothing she could say would be able to change anything.

Someone knocked on the door and Vixey stood to open it.

"Oh, hey, Po," she said. "Something up?"

At the sound of these greetings, Tigress turned to see the panda standing at the door. Po looked happier upon seeing that she was sitting up now.

"No, nothing's up," he said. "Just wanted to stop by and see how everyone's doing."

Vixey turned and offered a small smile to Tigress, who offered one back, but then turned to look at her little plant again. Vixey turned back to Po.

"I really wish she could come, and she wishes it, too," she whispered to him, "but she just can't. She's barely able to sit up as is."

Po felt something catch in his throat.

"I wish I could do something," he whispered back. "I'd even carry her if I could."

"You know what Tian said," Vixey told him. "We can't risk overexerting her. She might relapse."

Tigress didn't show them that she could hear everything. A tear slipped down her cheek, but she wasn't going to let them see it.

"Right, well, I gotta go," Po said, his voice up to a normal level again. "See you later, Tigress."

Tigress nodded, still refusing to show her face.

Vixey looked at her worriedly and then turned to look into the hallway, but Po had already left. She closed the door quietly.

* * *

"This totally sucks," Mantis muttered.

"You can say that again," Monkey agreed.

"The one time Tigress wants to come to a festival and she can't," Crane complained. "Did you offer carrying her, Po?"

"Of course, I did," Po answered. "But you know how much she hates being carried."

He kicked out at nothing as they descended the long staircase. In the sun's setting light, they could see several buildings in the Valley that were being rebuilt. It had only been a month since the fight, and half the village had buildings that needed to be demolished and rebuilt. Mr. Ping had taken this to his advantage and planned to have a kitchen with a higher ceiling. That was the only thing that could bring a smile to his son lately, but that spark faded.

As they approached the village square, they saw an extremely large crowd had gathered - much larger than usual due to an abnormal amount of visitors. They stood just outside the crowd and bowed with everyone as Shifu took the stand.

"Welcome, everyone," the old Master started. "It has been a long month since Ruili's tyranny has ended. We lost a great many good people in the battles to defeat her. This festival is dedicated to their honorable sacrifices. Please enjoy yourselves tonight."

Many people separated themselves from the crowd to look around the half-rebuilt village and to buy from the merchants present.

Po looked around at everything that was happening.

"I can't believe we have to do this festival without Tigress," he muttered. Crane, Monkey, and Mantis gloomily nodded in agreement.

"You said that a little too soon, Po."

The voice sounded almost angelic.

All four boys turned towards the speaker of those words so quickly that Crane's hat almost fell off. Tigress was there, standing, although Vixey was supporting her. They carefully walked to a nearby table and Viper slithered over to pull a chair out for Tigress. There were obvious signs that Tigress was in pain, but they were being smothered by how happy she was to be there.

"Wha-?! Tigress?!" Po started. "But I thought you weren't coming!"

"So did I, until about an hour ago," Tigress said wearily. "That must have been the longest I've ever taken getting down those stairs."

Po couldn't help but laugh. They began chatting like the friends they were for a long time. Soon, they heard people start talking about a tribute.

"What tribute?" Po started.

"The tribute for everyone who passed during Ruili's attack," Tigress said.

She looked a little down. Po suddenly stood up.

"I'll be right back," he said, and then raced off.

Soon, he was back with a smallish box of candles and a wooden bowl that looked big enough to hold a lot of items while still being able to float.

"Thought you might want to do this," he said, handing them to her.

Tigress smiled.

"Thanks, Po," she told him. "I only need one. For Xinli. No one from Miao Zhen will be here, so someone has to do it for her."

She reverently put the tribute together and lit the candle. Next to the candle, she put a single piece of parchment with Xinli's name on it.

"Now it's ready," she said. "Could you put it in the water for me?"

"'Course," Po told her.

He gently picked the bowl up and walked carefully to the water, where the last few people were sending off their tributes. As he sent off Xinli's, he looked up to see hundreds of candles in little wooden boats floating away. It was mesmerizing in the faltering natural light.

When Po finally came to his senses, he walked back to the table his friends were at. He saw that they were joined by a group of village children, taking turns with Tigress to place dominos. As he reached the table, a little bunny girl carefully placed a domino, but despite her delicate placing, it fell over and knocked down the line of eight or nine standing with it.

"Aw," she said, almost in tears.

"Don't worry little one," Tigress told her, handing her another one. "These are meant to stand up after falling. Try again."

She brushed away the other fallen dominos to give the rabbit girl a place to put her domino. The little paw let go of the little wood piece and froze. The piece just stood there.

"I did it!" the bunny cried, taking her paw away.

A pig boy looked quite bored.

"Why are we playing with dominos?" he moaned.

"Because dominos are what I started Kung Fu with," Tigress answered, carefully placing a tile next to the bunny's. "I needed to learn to have a steady hand and a firm mind."

A young goose placed a tile next to hers and the pig placed his.

"But don't you already have both?" the bunny asked.

"I did," Tigress said as the bunny placed hers, "but the injury I took a month ago stripped me of both. Pain can distract you from your task. It can also make for a very shaky hand."

As she said that, her tile toppled the others in the line.

"Ohh!" the bunny cried. "Almost!"

"Master Shifu taught me that the key is to never give up," Tigress continued, placing her tile. "You're always prone to falling down, no matter how good you are."

After each of the children placed another tile each, she began to place another. But then she stopped.

"Look," she said, pointing to a little wilted plant on the center of the table. "It's time."

Po didn't even notice the plant was there. He looked at it, then at the rising moon, and then back at the plant. The children gasped as the transformation began. The stem and leaves grew full. The flower pointed at the moon and opened, showing its seven circular, milky white petals.

"How does it do that?" the goose asked.

"This is a Moon Blossom," Tigress told the children. "It does this whenever the full moon rises."

"I want to make a necklace out of those petals," the bunny said dreamily.

"You could, but it wouldn't last," Tigress told her. "Once the moon sets, the petals will wither again and brand new ones will grow between now and the next full moon."

The Masters, children, and anyone who happened to notice it gazed at it in peaceful awe.

"What does it mean, though, Master Tigress?" the bunny asked. "My mama always told me everything has a meaning."

"It means..." Tigress started. "It means it's time for a new beginning."


	24. What's Next?

_**What's Next?**_

**Next: ** The Recovery Chronicles

**Summary:** After the events of Kung Fu Panda: Battle of the Millennia, the Valley of Peace is slowly recovering from a fierce battle. Tigress's wounds were among the greatest inflicted, granting her a frustratingly slow recovery. Will everyone recover before long?  
_[Current episode's summary]_

* * *

**Author's Note:**

Originally, Shifu was not going to accidentally mortally wound Ruili or even engage her in combat in the mountains.

Ruili was also originally going to survive the battle, though she was still captured and never heard of again.

I was going to have Nyota be present with her son during the festival, but I accidentally left them out. Due to this, I may feature them later as recurring characters... maybe...

* * *

**Author's Note **_**to you readers**_**:**

Thank you guys so much! I love you guys! Your reviews and private messages brightened my entire day as soon as I got them! When I was doubtful that certain chapters were done well, you guys sent in the best messages! Thank you!

_And I am not done!_ I have so much more planned after this! Stay tuned!

* * *

**Questions for the Viewers **_**(Please answer one or more in a review)**_**:**

_What was your favorite part in my fanfiction?_

_What was your least favorite part in my fanfiction?_

_Was this fanfiction better than its prequels?_

_Who is your favorite character so far?_

_Was I predictable or unpredictable?_

_What surprised you the most?_

_In your opinion, what could I have improved on?_

_Which battle was your favorite?_

_What are you most anxious to see in the future?_


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